Activist Uses Social Media to Advocate for Women in Orthodox Jewish Divorce

Under the handle Flatbush Girl, Adina Sash uses digital platforms to bring attention to men obstructing Jewish divorces. As both an activist and influencer, she aims to free Orthodox women she believes are stuck in marriages.

On social media, Sash received a flood of messages one day in March. A man calling himself Nathan Gettisberg appeared on a popular podcast discussing Jewish divorce. Some viewers recognized him and informed Sash he was using an alias. His true identity, according to them, was Raphi Stein, who was engaged in a contentious separation and had not granted his wife a get—a religious divorce seen as critical in Orthodox Jewish life.

Sash, 38, champions the cause of agunot, or “chained women.” She identified Stein as someone denying a get while publicly discussing Jewish divorce. She found this behavior “sadistic and hubristic.”

Without contacting Stein’s wife, Adeena Kohn, or Stein himself, Sash took to social media. She criticized the podcast network, Living L’Chaim, and sought information from her 100,000 followers. She later learned Kohn’s name and was informed by a friend that Kohn preferred privacy.

Sash embraced the challenge. She had orchestrated campaigns for agunot before, sometimes for compensation. In this case, given the attention Stein was already receiving and Kohn’s decision not to be involved, Sash opted to crowdsource financial support for the cause.