Image: Beba Idelson (right) with Knesset member Ada Maimon
After growing up in Ukraine, Beba Idelson became a Zionist activist and married Israel Idelson, a leader in the movement. But the couple would suffer gravely for their work: In 1923, Idelson and her husband were arrested and exiled to Siberia. Their only daughter, Rivka, was also born that year. They were deported in 1924, and in 1926 the family moved to Palestine. After Israel’s establishment, Idelson served in the first five Knessets, where she was also the first woman to serve as deputy speaker. During this time, she laid much of the legal groundwork for women’s rights in Israel.
Here at Moment, we’ve designated 2018 as the Year of the Woman, and this Yom Ha’atzmaut we’re thinking about the role of women in Israel’s founding. Stay tuned for our May/June issue, where we’ll be writing extensively about women in Israeli political life!