Black spraypaint crosses out the word “woman” in the sign at a women’s health center.

With highly volatile religious infighting, the politicization of religion in Israel, and the reactionary nature of communal discourse, extremism is gaining ground at an alarming rate.

Paradoxically, harmful practices committed by extremists in the name of religion are often tolerated by open-minded groups in the name of religious pluralism and a “live and let live” attitude. This allows extremism to fester unhindered and unrecognized until it is so pervasive that it is hard to identify or stop.

Disproportionately affected by these dangerous trends are women who are often the canary in the coal mine for society’s social ills. More than ever, amplifying the voice of religious women is not just a remedy for current injustices; it is the key to shifting and reshaping the very mechanisms by which religious society runs.