This video on followers of Judaism in Uganda is quick to point out that these people are not the Falasha, the Ethiopian Jews whose claim to Jewish ancestry has given them the opportunity to utilize the Law of Return. They have come to Judaism despite the lack of Jewish ancestry and have become fiercely drawn… Continue reading Searching for the promised land
I don’t necessarily agree with all of these articles but they definitely caught my eye this past week. “Gay vs. Orthodox: A Deadly Turn in Israel’s Culture War? (Time) This article points the finger at the ultra-Orthodox segment in Israel for the attack on a local gay youth club. “The Intermarriage Dividend” This article uses statistics to… Continue reading Jews in the News Roundup
Here is an op-ed piece I had hoped to publish a couple of months back when the “Benjamin Cardozo is Hispanic” craze really started. Before I’d even heard Sonia Sotomayor was picked as the first Hispanic Supreme Court Justice nominee, I received an email from Jewish friends saying she was not. According to them, Benjamin… Continue reading Benjamin Cardozo is not Hispanic
As usual I am floored by the responses to my writing, especially the responses to my piece on Aish.com. Unfortunately, some more than others. “David K , August 6, 2009: Easy for me to say but please try to love your mother. Any person with such mental illness needs love.” Right, uh, what? Why is… Continue reading Honoring Yourself, Children (But not Child Abusers)
Scrambling for movies to watch this summer, someone suggested “Adio Kerida”. The documentary, produced and directed by anthropologist Ruth Behar, is about the search for identity and memory among Sephardic Jews with roots in Cuba. Cuba as you know is just a hop, skip and a jump from my parents’ native Dominican Republic. Cuban food… Continue reading Adios Querida? No, Adio Kerida
Whoa, lots of posts about hair this week. If you enjoyed them, you can check out 51 other fun posts on hair by clicking on the “Hair” label at the bottom of this blog. Do you think I’ve got enough for a whole memoir on hair? It’s an idea. It does seem like people are… Continue reading All about Hair
My husband and I took a mini-trip up to Oxnard last week. I was not too happy about it. I mean, does Oxnard sound like an exciting place to you? I can’t think of an uglier name for a place right now. Worst of all, when we got there, we discovered our phones didn’t work.… Continue reading Aliza Goes to Oxnard
If you couldn’t get enough of my piece in last week’s Jewish Journal, then you can see it again at the Tolerant Nation blog “Thoughts on Race and Gates” and on Jewlicious. In case you don’t have the Jewish Journal in front of you, here are the Letters they received in response to my piece last week.… Continue reading Reprint: Thoughts on Race and Gates
Yeah, it’s the kosher and uncircumcised version of “Bagels and Locks” at Chabad.org, my mini-memoir on my love/hate relationship with my hair. Even if you’ve read alternative versions at shorter lengths, you’ll get a kick out of this one.
Whew, I need to get this off my chest. I have some bad news, folks. I do not live in a racist community. I live in a racist world. I spent a great deal of time in New York City and Los Angeles and I wouldn’t call either of the Jewish communities I live in… Continue reading I do not live in a racist community
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 