An email from a Jewish convert: The questions I often get about my “Irish” appearance pale (no pun intended) in comparison to what Jews of color must face but it’s still so annoying and intrusive. D. D. Then she goes on to tell me about the time a friend of a friend found out she… Continue reading Awkward much?
Did you hear the one about the black Harvard professor, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., who was arrested for trying to break into his own home? No, this is not the beginning of a joke. All over the country people were crying racism and President Barack Obama responded to the whole thing by saying the police… Continue reading From Harvard to Handcuffs
Did you hear the story about the African-American (and Hispanic) kids and the swim club? Basically, a camp took their kids to a private swim club (they had paid for the privilege) and while there, they heard all sorts of comments like “What are all these black kids doing here?” If that wasn’t enough damage… Continue reading Too Black to Swim Here
Are you Jewish? Can you prove it? ”Rabbinate refuses to marry Jewish couple over adoption suspicion” It won’t be just converts having to show their papers anymore. Do you have your certificate of Jewishness handy? Orthodox Women Rabbis? ”Between a rav and a hard place” Profile on Rabbi Avi Weiss wonders whether or not the rav has… Continue reading News of Note
Okay, how many times can I blog about Be’chol Lashon, seriously? I can’t help it. I love their monthly newsletter. Even with being a Jewminicana myself, it’s easy to forget how diverse Jews are when I show up at a typical Jewish lifecycle function and I’m the darkest person in the room. Okay, sometimes there… Continue reading Loving the Jewish diversity
The picture book, “I am Latino” is a celebration of Latino children everywhere and their various shades, cultures, and customs that define them. While the book is for ages 4-8, it would surely serve adults as well, especially the kind who like to remind me rather often that I do not look 1) Dominican and… Continue reading I AM LATINO!
Mini Jews of color at play. Last year, I begged my husband to take me to the Jewish Multiracial Network retreat. I think he rolled his eyes, asked me how much it cost and then rolled his eyes again. In the end, we didn’t end up going and a friend told us it was for… Continue reading Reflections on the Jewish Multiracial Network retreat
Jews of color and shul can be a bad combination. Many Jews of color are reticient or downright scared off by the idea of walking into a synagogue. The stares, the stupid questions…it can get pretty uncomfortable. But one Jew of color, Celeste Jackson, insists that Jews of color need to overcome these barriers because… Continue reading Stepping up to Shul
“Are you part black?” “Well, if you’re part black then why is he (pointing to white Jew) darker than you?” “Are you even Jewish?” Oh yeah, I’m a Jew of color. Responses to this blog have been posted by other Jews of color: “How are you Jewish? Defending One’s Jewish Identity” by Y-Love “How are… Continue reading Stupid Questions on Shabbat at Synagogue
What makes someone a Jew of color? When I recently met up with other Jews of color, I realized that I was the pastiest face in the room. I was the only one who could convincingly (and I have before) pass as just some tanned Ashkenazi or more likely, Sephardic girl. Does that mean I’m… Continue reading A Jew of non-color?
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 