The formal telling of the story of Passover is framed as a discussion with lots of questions and answers. The tradition is that the youngest person asks the questions because it re ects the centrality of involving everyone in the Seder. The rabbis who created the set format for the Seder gave us the Four Questions to help break the ice in case no one had their own questions. Asking questions is a core tradition in Jewish life. We would like to o er some questions of our own regarding the perpetuation of rape culture in the Jewish community. But this is just a jumping o point! What questions about rape culture are you curious about tonight?

1st Question: Why is rape culture hard to recognize sometimes?

Why is it such a normalized part of our culture? Why don’t people fully understand it? How can we change this?
Why does it sometimes feel like the Jewish community is absent or uninterested in addressing it?

2nd Question: Why do the media and pop culture continue to perpetuate the hyper-sexualization of women, the physical dominance of men, and invisiblize people who have non-binary genders?

What are the negative stereotypes that the media perpetuate, and what are their consequences?
What are examples of songs, ads, or other media that hypersexualize or invisiblize people based on gender?
How are young people particularly impacted by these negative messages?

3rd Question: Why, on this night, have we put bitter chocolate on the table?

What other foods might you choose to represent rape culture in this ritual? Why?

4th Question: How is this conversation about rape culture relevant to me?

How have I been implicated or impacted by rape culture?
What can I do to hold others in my life more accountable? 


haggadah Section: -- Four Questions
Source: Revenge of Dinah: A Feminist Seder on Rape Culture in the Jewish Community