Miriam Ezagui

Miriam Ezagui
Born
Miriam Malnik

April 27, 1986 (1986-04-27) (age 38)
Occupation(s)Nurse, TikToker
SpouseAron Ezagui
Children5
RelativesLilly Appelbaum Malnik (grandmother)
TikTok information
Page
Followers2.2M
Likes182.1M
Last updated: October 22, 2024
Websitebirthingwithmiriam.com

Miriam Malnik-Ezagui (born April 27, 1986)[1] is an American nurse and TikToker known for making videos about her life and experiences as an Orthodox Jew living in Brooklyn, New York. Malnik-Ezagui is the granddaughter of Holocaust survivor Lilly Appelbaum Malnik.

Early life and family

Miriam Malnik grew up in Maryland, in a less observant Jewish family; at age 9 her family became Orthodox.[2]

Ezagui is the granddaughter of Lilly Appelbaum Malnik, a Belgian Holocaust survivor who was imprisoned at Auschwitz concentration camp for fourteen months.[3][4] Her grandmother, who met the German Nazi doctor Josef Mengele three times while imprisoned, was liberated from the camp when she was sixteen years old by the British Army in 1945.[5] Ezagui's grandfather, Abraham Malnik, was a Holocaust survivor from Lithuania who was sent to Kovno Ghetto, a Jewish ghetto, and was later imprisoned at Dachau concentration camp, Flossenbürg concentration camp, Leitmeritz concentration camp, and the Theresienstadt Ghetto.[5][6] Ezagui's grandaunt, granduncle, great-grandmother, great-granduncle, and great-grandaunt were killed during the Holocaust.[3]

Career

Ezagui works as a labor and delivery nurse at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and runs her own business, Birthing With Miriam, a program that offers childbirth classes.[2][7][8]

Social media

Ezagui has over 614,000 followers on Instagram and close to 2 million followers on TikTok as of June 2024.[9][10][11] She first began posting videos in May 2020.[12] Her early content focused on babywearing, but in February 2022 she began to post about antisemitism and her Jewish identity following a comment made by Whoopi Goldberg the previous month that claimed the Holocaust wasn't racially motivated.[1][12] Most of Ezagui's content focuses on educating people about Jewish culture, faith, history, and practices.[13][14] These videos range from education on kosher laws and family purity laws to holiday preparations and celebrations.[13][14][15]

Starting in April 2022 Ezagui began posting videos with her grandmother, who spoke about life during World War II and living in a concentration camp.[12][3][16] One video with her grandmother received over 23 million views.[3][17][18]

In September 2023, Ezagui was named as the Best Jewish TikToker by Jewish magazine Hey Alma.[19]

In April 2024, Ezagui attended the March of the Living in Europe as part of a trip sponsored by TikTok. During the trip, she visited Auschwitz, where her grandmother had been imprisoned.[20]

Personal life

She is married to Aron Ezagui, a paramedic, and has five daughters.[7][2] [20] She and her family live in Brooklyn, New York City.[21] They are Hasidic Orthodox Jews who follow traditional religious practices including Taharas Hamishpacha, or laws of family purity.[1][22]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Miriam Ezagui, 37, TikTok star". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. May 16, 2023. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "Orthodox Mom, Who Gives Glimpse Into Family Life, Never Expected Videos to Go Viral (Exclusive)". Peoplemag. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d "'I want the world to see': Holocaust survivor shares Auschwitz stories on TikTok". Stars and Stripes. February 28, 2023. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  4. ^ "orlando sentinel obituaries past week". Tresorbau-guembel.de. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "96-Year-Old Holocaust Survivor Recalls Horrors of Auschwitz". Ark.media. August 22, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  6. ^ "EHRI - Abraham and Lilly Malnik collection". portal.ehri-project.eu. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Bradley, Sian (January 2, 2023). "This couple never share a bed – but it makes their sex life 'spicy'". Metro News. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  8. ^ "Birthing With Miriam | Registered Nurse | Brooklyn NY". Birthing With Miriam. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  9. ^ "Miriam Ezagui (@miriamezagui)". Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via TikTok.
  10. ^ "Miriam Malnik-Ezagui (@miriam.ezagui)". Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via Instagram.
  11. ^ Lieber, Chavie. "Orthodox Jews Are Finally Having Their Pop Culture Moment". WSJ. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  12. ^ a b c Karpen, Elizabeth (March 10, 2023). "TikTok influencer Miriam Ezagui teaches the masses about Orthodox life". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  13. ^ a b "She never sleeps with her husband in the same bed. Thanks to this, their sex life is 'passionate and spicy'". 247 News Agency. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  14. ^ a b Lambert, Rivkah (August 20, 2022). "Meet TikTok, Instagram's Orthodox Jewish women content creators". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  15. ^ "What happens if you accidentally eat non-Kosher food? TikTok explains". The Jerusalem Post. January 12, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  16. ^ Breslow, Samuel (September 12, 2022). "New research suggests Nazis made Jewish women infertile". The Forward. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  17. ^ "Chabad of Ellicott City Honors Holocaust Survivor Grandma". Jewishtimes.com. March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  18. ^ "Holocaust survivor Lilly Malnik". Baltimore Sun. February 27, 2023. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  19. ^ "The Winners of This Year's Jewish Pop Culture Awards". Hey Alma. September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  20. ^ a b Zaltzman, Lior (May 8, 2024). "Orthodox TikTok Influencer Miriam Ezagui Posts Dramatic Video from Auschwitz". Kveller. Retrieved May 24, 2024.
  21. ^ Reast, Amy; Dalton, Nia (January 2, 2023). "'I never share a bed with my husband - it keeps our sex life spicy'". mirror. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  22. ^ Smith, Daniel (January 2, 2023). "Mum says never sharing a bed with her husband makes relationship stronger". HullLive. Retrieved March 23, 2023.