My post about Alysa Stanton, an African-American woman who had an Orthodox conversion and then decided to pursue a career in the Reform rabbinate, has sparked a lot of controversy off the blog. Does one Orthodox convert’s decision to leave Orthodoxy affect the way that other Orthodox converts are perceived? Should it? I think we… Continue reading This is between me and G-d….
Alysa Stanton I spotted Rabbinical Student on her way to make history on someone else’s blog. It profiles convert Alysa Stanton who had an Orthodox conversion but found herself more at home in Reform Judaism. “[A Reform congregation] tends to be more welcoming to those who are not born Jewish,” the blogpost quotes. Stanton is… Continue reading She’s a rabbi!
My family members and me at my big fat Jewish Dominican wedding. My latest piece, My Big Fat Jewish Dominican Jewish Wedding, just hit Interfaithfamily.com.
Remodeling the world. Some bad book I was reading was making fun of suburbanites and how much time they spend talking about remodeling their homes. I found this curious because I had yet to walk into such a conversation out here in Los Angeles. And then it happened. During one Sukkot meal, I happened upon… Continue reading Silence, A Response
I’m not sure whether or not to laugh or cry. You decide?
“Y-Love” aka Yitz Jordan performs in New York. The New York Daily News featured Modern Orthodox rapper/Jewish convert, Y-Love in “Tale of tragedy and triumph for struggling Hasidic rap star.” The article presents an interesting portrait of the Orthodox Jewish convert. A quote from a rabbi cites that hip-hop is harmful and that “music of… Continue reading Hip-Hop is Harmful?
If you missed my August 12 post on racism, here is the link to the essay, “A Nation Divded: Coping with Racism in the Jewish Community” now available at Interfaithfamily.com.
Interfaithfamily.com just reprinted an article of mine from PresenTense Magazine. Check out: Converts on the True Colors of the Jewish Community. “Do Jews who negatively react to my skin color forget that they were once slaves in Egypt and strangers in another land?” Rapper Y-Love (aka Yitzchak Jordan) was interviewed for the piece.
Here is my latest piece for Interfaithfamily.com. I’m posting it before it’s published on the web and will eventually replace this text with a link to the website: A Nation Divided: Coping with Racism in the Jewish Community “So where you from?” they ask. “New York,” I say. “No, really. Where you from?” “New York!”… Continue reading A Nation Divided: Coping with Racism in the Jewish Community
I just picked up In Every Tongue: The Racial & Ethnic Diversity of the Jewish People by Diane Tobin, Gary A. Tobin & Scott Rubin. Currently, I’m reading the chapter called “Feet in Many Rivers: Navigating Multiple Identities.” There were many other interesting chapters I could have started with but this one drew me in… Continue reading Jews come in all shapes, colors and sizes
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 