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Love is a fundamental emotion shared by people across the world. It is something that may easily be taken for granted, but not by the women portrayed in the film Keep Not Silent.

The film, directed by Illil Alexander, is about a group of extremely devout Jewish lesbians living in a society that does not accept any form of homosexuality, as it is seen as unholy in the writings of the Torah.

Alexander came to UWM on March 13 to accompany the screening of Keep Not Silent, her first feature film and winner of the 2004 Israel Oscar for Best Documentary.

Most orthodox Jewish lesbians live in fear of being found out, and choose to keep their sexuality secret. Some are more outspoken about their lifestyle, like Yudith, who, interestingly, is a rabbi's daughter. She openly declares her sexuality, believing "lies are the worst sin on earth."

If an orthodox Jew desires an answer to any difficult question they can go to a rabbi who will consult the Torah to find an answer. However, when Yudith implores as to how she should deal with her desire to marry a woman, the rabbi vehemently denies that option, explaining that the Torah does not accept homosexual marriage. He even goes on to compare homosexual people to murderers, since both act upon their unholy tendencies.

However, the rabbi did tell Yudith that even though marriage is unacceptable, any sort of physical relationship between two women is just fine. It is seen as a greater sin for a woman not to not cover her face, since it invites men to think sinful thoughts.

In this society, women who have feelings for other women are forced to suppress any emotions or relations they may desire. They often keep their real feelings secret from their loved ones, and are forced to lead double lives.

Some women choose to ignore their true emotions altogether. Miriam-Ester is one of these women. She chose to hide her love of women and acts as though she is attracted to men in order to be accepted by her society.

These feelings of course are often not so easy to suppress, and in the late 80s these women started a support group called "Ortho-Dykes." The Ortho-Dykes hold meetings in which they can discuss their issues and thoughts. Since their lives leave them feeling as though they are outcasts, the Ortho-Dykes can support and give each other hope for happiness and acceptance.

Even though a woman may not be sexually attracted to the man chosen by her family as her husband, the thought of bringing shame to her family overrides this, and she will often be placed into marriage regardless of her feelings.

In American society divorce would be an option, but in Jewish culture any child with divorced parents would be deemed a less desirable choice when their turn to be married comes around. This renders divorce out of the question.

In order to keep her family, Ruth, a woman in the film, is permitted by her husband to meet with her female lover twice a week.

Some people ask, "Why don't these women just leave?" The reason is simple. They don't want to. They realize that they are not in the position to invent new rules. How can a person leave behind everyone that they love and start all over? The conflict is that they do not want to let down their children and family, not that they are lesbians and cannot get married.

This film gives people of different cultures an excellent perspective of what issues exist throughout the world. It also gives us a chance to compare these issues to what people in America are experiencing as well, for example the ban of gay marriage in a majority of states. Homosexuals in the United States deal with many of the same tribulations.

Keep Not Silent is available at the UWM library in the media section.

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