Jewish law is not egalitarian in terms of marriage and divorce laws.  The man is the active partner in the wedding (he performs a kinyan, a legal transaction by which he "acquires" his wife), and he is also the active partner in divorce proceedings, as he is the one who hands his wife the get and he must do this of his own free will. 

In ancient times, women were considered agunot when their husbands disappeared and there were no witnesses to prove if they were alive or dead. In such cases the rabbis tried to be as lenient as possible, in order to free the woman from the terrible ordeal it meant to be a "living widow" (since her status could not be proven, she would still be legally married and not considered a widow). In our time, this can occur with soldiers during wars (which unfortunately has been a reality in Israel) or in extreme situations such as in 9/11.  

So why is a GET so important? In order to respond to this question, let me refer to the two situations that occur when applying Jewish law that I consider to be most difficult from an ethical point of view, and that are both still relevant in modern times. 

Firstly, the status of being an ‘agunah’: since Jewish law requires a husband to give a get of his own free will, if the get can be construed to be given under duress, it is not valid. Any woman who remarries on the basis of such a get is actually an adulteress. Any child born to that woman from another man will be considered a ‘mamzer’. 

Second, a terrible situation can derive from not having a get or having an invalid one. The word ‘mamzer’ can be translated as "bastard", yet it does not mean a child born out of wedlock. It means a child born from a forbidden relationship, such as from a woman who is still legally married to one man with another man. The consequences in Jewish law are not just a stigma - such a child will be severely limited if he wants to get married in the future (s/he can only marry another mamzer or a convert). Furthermore, this condition is transmitted to future generations that will be faced with the same problematic status as the "defective" parent. 

It is true that rabbis throughout the centuries have tried to avoid such situations. If a case was not publicly known, the child could avoid that stigma; when a case was publicly known, rabbis tried to find technical reasons within Jewish law that would allow them to declare the person "kosher" and not a mamzer. Yet the threat remains even to our day, and at least in Israel, rabbinic courts are known to have "black lists" of people that will be rejected if they ever register for marriage. 

Modern day agunot are usually women whose husbands are present, yet they refuse to give their wives a get. There are many reasons for this: he may be jealous and does not want her to remarry; he may want to extort her for a better financial settlement; he may want issues of child custody to suit his situation etc. While a minority of husbands resort to these tactics, when this occurs rabbinic court judges are very careful not to pressure the husband  - even indirectly - so that no one can question the ‘validity’ of the get, with the unfortunate consequences this would entail. 

What is so sad about all this is that Jewish law has developed methods to prevent women from becoming agunot and for obtaining a get in most situations. But what happens most often is that rabbinic court judges follow the stricter interpretations of the law - denying the GET - even though there is ample rabbinic precedent for leniency.

As thousands of Jewish women wait far too long for their divorce, it is vital to publicize the gravity of the situation, which potentially affects any woman who gets married according to Jewish law. As long as rabbinic court judges don’t free these women whose husbands refuse to divorce them within a reasonable timeframe, no woman should agree to marry without signing a prenuptial agreement. Any fiance worth his salt will agree to this. These agreements must be valid both according to civil and Jewish law.  Financial agreements that require a husband to pay high monthly sums are the most effective prenups.  

(And though the prenuptial agreement is a modern tool to prevent someone from becoming an agunah, it is not foolproof.  If someone is in an accident and becomes a vegetable, is already in jail and doesn't care about financial sanctions, or is so rich that sanctions don't affect them, the pre-nup will not work. However, they will work in over 90% of cases.)

A word about our Grandfather Rabbi Leo Jung and the GET:  Grandfather was always as lenient as he felt he could be within the halakhic framework, and always looked for rabbinic answers that would make people's lives easier, and still be loyal to what he called ‘Torah-true Judaism’.  He was an early advocate for conditional marriage.  It is no surprise that Rabbi Eliezer Berkovits dedicated his seminal book "Conditional Marriage and Divorce - a Halakhic Analysis" to Rabbi Jung, thanking him for his encouragement and support.  The book examines conditional marriage in Jewish law as a preventive solution to the agunah dilemma.  The Orthodox world is now reconsidering this solution.

Why is Conditional Marriage the best answer?  Because marriages that fulfill certain conditions stipulated before the wedding ceremony can be retroactively annulled without the need for a get.  The one by the Center for Women's Justice stipulates that if the couple hasn't lived together for 18 months under the same roof, the marriage is annulled.  I believe that if the Orthodox world adopts this, it will be the best preventive tool.

What has changed over the past ten years in the Get Battle?  Happily, the public is much more conscious of the problem.  Organizations all over the Jewish world, as well as lawyers and rabbinic court advocates (now including women) are watching rabbinic courts with a hawk's eye; they have to be more careful.  Too many of these judges still look over their shoulders, afraid they will be accused of arranging an invalid get. In Israel, rabbinic court judges are almost all haredi - it is virtually impossible to change their minds and have them use the halakhic tools at their disposal. Modern Orthodox rabbis discuss the issues and even propose starting alternative Batei Din that would arrange for a get, in the hope that they would then be recognized by the Rabbinate, just as they recognize a get from an UltraOrthodox Beit Din.  But it's been all talk, and no action. 

When the Chief Sephardi Rabbi arranged for an international conference to discuss solutions to the problem, so many rabbis boycotted it at the last minute that he had to cancel it...

Let us use the GET rap as a tool that will help raise awareness of the GET problem, so women become better protected and do not have to rely on the goodwill of their husbands and the rabbinic courts. 

Not one more single woman should have to suffer as an agunah!