ZAMEK Culture Centre

Meeting with Deborah Feldman, author of the best-selling Unorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of My Hasidic Roots, the book later adapted into the acclaimed Netflix series. Feldman grew up in a closed, ultra-conservative community of New York Hasidic Jews, which she left at the age of 20 to start a new life in Berlin. Through her writing, she has gained international fame and become an important voice in the German public sphere. Recently, the author has focused on the events in Israel and Palestine and the response they provoke in Europe. While taking a strong pro-Palestinian stance, she simultaneously underscores her Jewish identity.

During the meeting, the author will talk about the experiences on which she drew in her books and which prompted her public engagement. The conversation will be an opportunity to ask questions about how Feldman understands Jewish identity and the role that history, memory, and contemporary politics play in shaping it.