Israel’s fourth prime minister, Golda Meir, was a different kind of politician than many of the men around her. Hard-spoken, charismatic, and an accomplished leader, Golda overthrew many of the outdated expectations of women at the time, but she also leaned into her identity as a woman. She was one of the first prominent career women to openly discuss the challenges of being a working mother, and shared her love of cooking, then considered a typical female activity, throughout her life. proudly proclaimed.
Connecting people through food
Italian female journalists Oriana Fallaci and Golda Meir had a warm bond. When Orianna asked Golda in 1972 what he thought about Israel’s first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion constantly calling him “the only man” in his cabinet, Golda said: “Men use this word as a great compliment, but I’ve always found it frustrating. Is it…? I just don’t agree with the idea that it’s better to be a man than a woman.” Work remained an important outlet.
Golda was born in 1898 in Kiev, Ukraine, into a large, warm Jewish family. She fondly remembered her Sabbath night at her parents’ house. In those days many of her relatives and guests stayed up late, singing Shabbat songs, loudly discussing politics in Yiddish, and tasting her mother’s delicious Shabbat meals. Her family emigrated to the United States in 1906 to escape violent pogroms in Russia. (Golda’s earliest memory is of her fear-driven father boarding up the windows and doors of her house to protect her and her family.) Her husband Morris moved to Israel in 1921. During her state days, Golda never lost her love of cooking and appreciation for traditional Jewish cuisine. When Gorda and Morris moved to an impoverished kibbutz (communal farm), Gorda helped organize the workers and used rustic ingredients like beans, chickpeas, eggplant and zucchini to make classics like chopped liver. I also experimented with how to reproduce authentic Jewish cuisine.
kitchen cabinet
Original black and white photograph of Golda Meir, taken by David Rubinger in 1950
By the time he became prime minister in 1969, Gorda was well known for his culinary habits. She drank a dozen cups of coffee each day and left two kettles of strong coffee on the stove all day to serve her guests. She also enacted unique and controversial political practices. It invited a select group of advisors into the tiny kitchen of an apartment with a small formica table to eat, drink and make high-level decisions away from the prying eyes and ears of other politicians. was.
Enemies and allies alike called it hammitbasshon shell golda – Gorda’s small kitchen. “It was an honor to be invited to a meeting in Golda’s kitchen,” former Labor Party secretary-general Roba Eliahu once recalled. “She was a wonderful baker. We all loved this weekly ritual. She served guests coffee and cheesecake or apple strudel. I flatly refused. It would be an insult to her.”
in the new movie GordaIt depicts Golda Meir, brilliantly played by Helen Mirren, baking cakes and serving her advisors to her entourage. It’s an almost accurate scene that captures Gorda’s warmth and her affection for the reality of cooking and sharing Jewish food.
“Golda” opens in theaters in the United States on August 25th. bleaker street / Sibhands Pictures. August 23rd Fathom secret screening.
To celebrate the opening, let’s make a Gorda salad.
