Rachel Goldberg-Polin: A Valiant Mother
I hold my necklace in between my lips and cry. My dog tag, which I have worn ever since I purchased it in Jerusalem’s Shuk a few days after Oct. 7, is tarnished and covered in tears. Jerusalem, the city which had been turned upside down in one day almost 11 months ago, is now retraumatized by the news last night.
Just a few hours after Shabbat ended, news broke of the murder of six hostages including Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who many dubbed the “symbol of the hostages.”
At the six-month anniversary of Oct. 7, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Hersh’s mother and one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2024, spoke at Lamport Auditorium about her son and her experience as the mother of a hostage. I was so moved and invigorated by her speech that I wrote an article covering the event that same night. We came to give her strength which she in turn gave us.
Rachel became the face of the relatives of the hostages, and spoke to President Biden, Pope Francis and the United Nations, pleading for a deal to return the remaining hostages home.
Relistening to her speeches brings chills down my spine and tears to my cheeks. Her ability to stay apolitical in a highly politicized ordeal and her ability to underscore the diversity of the hostages is remarkable. As she has repeated many times, “in a competition of pain there is never a winner.”
Numbers may fade away quickly, but voices linger on. Rachel was and is that voice for all of us. As Joelle Spinner, mother of Selma (SCW ‘26), wrote:
“Rachel, We prayed with you,
We hoped with you,
We cried with you,
Today we tear our shirts with you.”
For me, the news motzei Shabbat shattered much of that hope. Rachel had always been the sign of optimism in the face of adversity. As she ended her speech at the Democratic National Convention last week to a shattering applause, “Hersh, Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you. Stay strong, survive.” But now, just days later, where does that hope go?
Since Oct. 7 the question has lingered — when is a tragedy over? Many minyanim in YU have stopped saying Avinu Malkeinu following Shemoneh Esrei, and it seems that many of us have stopped thinking about the tragedy in Israel. Yet the tragedy persists, and last night's news, which in addition to confirming the deaths of six hostages, reported the deaths of three more Israeli police and the wounding of several others, is another reminder of that.
If there is one thing I have learned from Rachel, it is that we must not let tragedy be the status quo. “Why? Why is the world accepting?” she announced at the march on Washington “What the world needs to start thinking about today is what will your excuse be!”
As we grapple with the horrific news, we must not let our dog tags tarnish. We must shine them, remember them, wear them proudly around our necks and near our hearts. As is inscribed on mine, halev sheli shavoi beazah — “my heart is held captive in Gaza.”
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Photo Caption: My dog tag
Photo Credit: Nissim Farhy
