"stepped over the boundaries of Jewish exclusion and women's silence" - in regards to Eugenia Levy Phillips & Phoebe Yates Pemper
"Like other Southern women, they [Jewish women] have been largely responsible for maintaining religious identity by upholding strict gender models and maintaining the home. This was no easy task, particularly in the pork-loving South." "They also shared the complexities of women's quest to carry on responsibility and actively under the constraints of the model Southern lady."
These 2 sisters became popular, well-known Southern women, as despite their religion and gender, they stood up publicly for what they believed in. They let it be known that they would not be stopped by men or any other "superior" without good reason or resolution. In challenging the classic roles of a "warm jewish woman" or a "disciplined and proper southern lady," these two crossed all boundaries in the fight for what they believed in. On top of starting and running many Sunday schools in Savannah GA, implying a strong importance on education, they also strived to take a stance on confederacy. They shockingly, despite their minority role, believed in confederacy, and so much so that they (along with other of their siblings) were arrested for standing out on this manner.
This is extremely interesting and surprising. When I first came across 2 popular, strong Jewish women from Savannah, I expected them to be advocating for equal rights for women, or for Jews, or both! I expected them to be fighting for themselves, and for their daughters to come...to be able to hold equal work as others, to maintain equal pay. I expected they would be progressive and ahead of their times. I would NOT have expected these strong Jewish women to be so adamant on such a topic, as slavery. Would you??? ~Feel free to leave comments and start a discussion on this page!~ https://books.google.com/books?id=aHSqIWYQWjUC&pg=PA10&lpg=PA10&dq=jewish+southern+women+19th+century&source=bl&ots=w3jgIehV9H&sig=ckjZrqJwMlBXJRbmt6umMUtPEsM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwifxKPh7pzTAhUDQSYKHZ9DByoQ6AEISTAL#v=onepage&q=jewish%20southern%20women%2019th%20century&f=false https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/pember-phoebe-yates-levy