The previously untold story of a group of young Jewish housewives and mothers who, at the height of the Cold War, challenged the might of the USSR to defend the rights and freedoms of Soviet Jews—and won. Known as the 35s, this international network of women had no political power or experience, yet refused to stand idle in the face of Soviet persecution.

Starting with protests and demonstrations, they eventually embarked on clandestine missions behind the Iron Curtain, posing as tourists to support “Refusenik” Jews. With the aid of the secret Israeli agency Nativ, their efforts fueled political campaigns that helped secure the release of key dissidents and paved the way for the liberation of over a million Soviet Jews. For decades, their actions remained secret—but now, in their seventies and eighties, they are finally ready to speak.