Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here are that of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the Union for Traditional Judaism, unless otherwise indicated.
Mitch Morrison writes about a program regarding child sexual abuse in the Jewish community held at Congregation Ahavas Israel in Passaic, New Jersey.
The anecdotes of child sexual molestation in some of the Orthodox communities have shifted in recent years from shock to awe, denial to resignation.
Yet, on this night – less than 24 hours before the calendar’s holiest day of Yom Kippur, there is something startling about the 2 hours of testimonials from four men and one woman ranging from teens to 40s.
Read more at https://failedmessiah.typepad.com/failed_messiahcom/2009/10/letter-from-passaic-talking-abuse-456.html. Read a Jewish Week article about the Passaic community confronting child sexual abuse, which quotes Mitch Morrison extensively, at https://jewishweek.timesofisrael.com/a-haredi-town-confronts-abuse-from-the-inside/.
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In the professional world, Mitch Morrison is an award-winning journalist with a ceaseless curiosity that has crossed over into the Jewish World.
Raised in Brookline, MA, and guided by the philosophical approach of Rav Joseph Soloveitchik, zt’l, Mitch has spent much of his adult life volunteering on the education boards of Jewish Day Schools, Orthodox synagogues and today continues his volunteer activities with Partners in Torah, and helps pen opinion pieces for multiple rabbis.
Upon graduating from Maimonides Day School, Mitch enrolled at Boston University, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in journalism with magna cum laude honors. From there, he studied at Yeshivat Hamivtar in Efrat, learning under both Rabbis Shlomo Riskin and Chaim Brovender.
Since the late 1980s, Mitch has worked at newspapers and business magazines, and is currently a vice president for a business trade media, where he writes and speaks about retailing trends and interfaces with many top retail executives.
Mitch joined the UTJ in the early 1990s, drawn by the organization’s synthesis of fidelity to halakhah with academic and historical scholarship.
“The UTJ brings a Torah approach that is three-dimensional,” Mitch says. “It recognizes that Torah and halakhah do not reside in some far-off island, unaware or consciously ignorant of society’s flaws and fortunes. The beauty of Torah is that it’s built for humankind and, when lived and applied properly, underwrites an extraordinary morality that elevates everyone it touches.”
Over 20+ years with the UTJ, Mitch edited its Hagahelet newsletter and has helped organize events, including on halakhic conversion, sexual molestation in the halakhic community, and challenges confronting adult singles.
Mitch and his wife, Leslie, are the proud parents of two children and reside in Passaic, NJ.