What’s the most effective way to solve the alleged agunot crisis? Solve the agunim crisis first!
Today in many Jewish communities the real divorce problem that must be addressed, before the agunot crisis can be corrected, is the “agunim” problem. The “agunim” problem refers to Jewish men who cannot remarry due to either their inability to deliver a kosher Get, or due to their financial collapse as a result of their wife’s divorce actions. The “agunim” is rarely discussed in the Jewish media or by Orthodox rabbis but in fact it is a major reason for the largely artificial agunot crisis!
Jewish men in divorce conflicts will likely consult with halacha observant Orthodox rabbis. In such cases, the men will probably be advised (correctly) by their rabbis that the men must NOT deliver a Get to their wives while the men are subjected to vicious harassment, intimidation, and abuse from the various “agunot” groups and activists, such as the YU based ORA group. Jewish men are normally prohibited by halacha from delivering a Get while subject to any coercion, in which case they may become virtual “agunim“. They are virtual “agunim” because their are steep obstacles preventing them from obtaining a “heter meah rabbanim” and then remarrying on it.
The feminist “agunot” groups who engage in coercion against Jewish men are fully responsible for creating the resulting fake “agunot” when Jewish husbands are unable to deliver a kosher Get.
Even IF the male “agunim” were to give a Get to their wives, in many cases the wives of these “agunim” are litigating in non-Jewish courts in violation of halacha. In such cases these men may be denied proper parenting time with their beloved children, while their time and energy is expended on legal defense efforts, and while they are financially crushed by legal fees, debts, child support, and alimony payments. These nightmare conditions prevent these men from getting remarried and cause them to become virtual “agunim“.
Whoever really wants to fix the so-called “agunah” problem should first direct their efforts to fixing the “agunim” problem. When Jewish men’s rights are respected by the Jewish communities, and by the agunot groups, and by the politicized feminist rabbis, and when Jewish men observe that their divorce disputes have been resolved fairly and according to Torah law, these men will likely deliver a kosher Get to their wives in most cases. The so-called “agunah” problem will then also be resolved in most cases.