Shaina Z.

Age: 13

Grade: 8th

Program: Rosh Hodesh: It’s a Girl Thing! at Congregation Beth Emek in Pleasanton, CA.

Her slogan:

Wearing Only My Entire Nation On My Shoulders (Like a Tallit)

Shaina makes the case for gender equality at the Wall:

We need to be able to stand up, loud and proud. If you knock us down, we will just get back up, a little louder and even more proud. The world sees equality among genders, that is, in most places, except at the wall. Our wall. The wall of our history, the wall — like the tallit — is the Jewish peoples past, present, and future.

Hear her full statement in this video:

http://youtu.be/wUe6tyMtIUk