Lately, I’ve been hearing a lot about “Jewish food.” The phrase seems to be on the tip of everyone’s tongue. The phrase troubles me because when people talk about “Jewish food,” I’ve noticed they seem to only be talking about Ashkenazi (Eastern European) food. So you can imagine my distress when I stumbled upon ”A… Continue reading What’s Jewish food?
For the second year in a row, my husband and I spent our summer in Los Angeles. Again, my husband was playing the role of rabbinic intern at a local Orthodox congregation, Bnai David Judea, where he, in fact, had his bar mitzvah. And while he was off learning to be a rabbi, everyone wondered… Continue reading Leaving Los Angeles
Just another day around the Shabbat table…. “Wow, you’re so exotic-looking!” the host gushes. Everyone turns to stare at me. “Not really,” I reply casually, trying to contain my eye roll. “There’s a whole island full of people who look like me.” “Oh, the Dominican Republic?” the host asks knowingly with a laugh. “No,” I… Continue reading I just have one of those faces
Jewish Infighting “Who will carry the torch for Jewish unity?” (The Jewish Chronicle) Simon Rock asks, “How can we preserve Jewish peoplehood if we can’t agree who is a Jew?” A very good question! His article gives a good, if long-winded, look at the obstacles that currently impede Jewish unity. “Racists, Fascists, Self-hating Jews and… Continue reading Jews in the News: The Latest on Conversion, Jews, Movies and More
Last week, the local paper, The Riverdale Press contacted me for an interview. Somehow, they had stumbled upon my blog. During the really-early-in-the-morning interview, I hoped that I wouldn’t embarrass myself too much. Mostly, I didn’t. Check out: “Blogger chronicles her Catholic past, Jewish present”
I was standing in a school cafeteria in Middlebury, Vermont, surrounded by Jews of every flavor, as well as many Israelis with a very “Sephardic” look. And then, someone said something to one of the teachers, a 50-or-60-something-year-old woman who has spent most of her life in Israel. Repeatedly, I heard her say,”You? A convert?… Continue reading And yet another episode of "As the Convert’s World Turns"
Vanessa Hidary, the Hebrew Mamita, is touring Israel and of course, she’s already been interviewed by The Jerusalem Post in a video where she talks about performing and the reactions she has received from Jewish and non-Jewish audiences alike. Below is a clip of Hidary telling us a story about a Jewish girl and her… Continue reading Hebrew Mamita hits The Jerusalem Post
Speaking of Spanish and Caribbean Jewish mixes, here are some mixes my friend came up with… Jewmaicans JewbansJewricuas (Puerto Rican Jews)JewlombiansJewzuelansJewxicansJewdoreansJewmalans Jewricans (Costa Rican) Jewduranians? Jewlizians (Belize) are privileged because it sounds delicious! Jewlivians Jewruvians Jewdorians Whew, in the end he said, “I cannot do it with Honduras. Maybe they are no Jews in Honduras.” What other Jew-mixes… Continue reading Jew+Country of Origin=Flavorful Jews
Walking down the street in Los Angeles, a little blond seven-year-old Jewish girl sees a black Orthodox Jewish man in a black suit, black hat, white shirt and tzitzit flying in the wind. “Wow, that’s weird,” she says to her mother. Her white Jewish mother holds her breath waiting for the next statement. “Did you… Continue reading Sighting: The Black Jew
I get such great letters from readers and I’m going to try to post more of them up here. Here’s a good one! Dear Aliza, A good friend of mine recently sent me a link to “Funny, You Don’t Look Jewish” and it blew my mind. It stirred up feelings in me that I haven’t… Continue reading Dear Aliza: It’s Easier Being Black in Israel. NOT!
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 