I have reposted the actual text so y’all can read my last letter in that has been a very interesting back and forth:

To The Daughter of the King,

In your last letter, you asked me a very important question: “Why does it bother you so much that women’s pictures do not appear in the FJJ? Why do you care?”

I can ask you the same question: Why do you care enough to write back to me?

And we can ask the same question of the many, many other letter writers who have been dialoging on this issue as well. Why do we all care? If it’s just a simple photo choice—isn’t that trivial? Why should we all be spending any time at all on this nahrishkeit?

I think we ALL care: me, the daughter of the king, and others, because we know that in fact it is NOT just a simple photo choice. It matters. What we choose to show or not show, include or not include, says something about our values and the culture of our community. It send messages to our children about those values, too.

Creating a new policy that women are not to be included visually in printed materials, no matter if they are dressed in a tznius fashion, is a critical and new decision that has long reaching ramifications. I have the impression that all the pros and cons of that decision have not been explored or thought about deeply enough in our community. And since it has so many far reaching consequences, many of which I have outlined in my previous letters…YES, I most certainly care.

But, I also think that I’ve fully expressed my thinking on the matter, and it’s time for me to sign off. I don’t want to overstay my welcome on these pages! Many thanks to the editorial board of the FJJ for allowing others to read my words. I hope this dialogue has raised awareness, prompted discussion, and has made us all “care” a little more about our culture and the choices we are all making for it.

Wishing all the readers of the FJJ a meaningful three weeks,

Ann D. Koffsky

PS The Daughter of the King mentioned that she found it compelling that the Jewish Observer had included photos of women. If anyone is interested in seeing this, I have begun A Photo Essay of Jewish Women. Simply search for my boards on Pinterest, and you can see it, and many other compelling images, there.