Alef: The NEXT Conversation

16: Diverse Jews

This week we introduce issue #16: Diverse Jews

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If you ask Joe Schmoe on the street to describe a typical Jewish person, he’ll probably give you a lively description of a Woody Allen or Larry David-type character.  Both are white, American, Ashkenazim with neurotic personalities and a desire to sarcastically sass their listening public – a very particular, and to most of us very visible, breed of Jew (even if also pretty stereotypical…but more on that in a future issue).  Joe might also be quick to describe Hassidim in dark suits and payot, or even the also-stereotypical “Jewish American Princess”. All of these types, and many more, despite their differences, have something in common: they are white, American Jews.  According to research done in the early 2000′s though, this type makes up only 40% of all Jewish people.

So where are the rest?

Sure, the population of Israel is a great source of the world’s remaining Jewish people, but you’d be surprised at where else you can find fellow members of the tribe.  Maybe you’ve heard of the Ethiopian Jews, but how much do you know about the Kaifeng Jews or the Philippine Jews?  What about the story of the Cochin Jews of India, who arrived in 562 BCE and historically never encountered Anti-Semitism from their Hindu compatriots? The truth is that thousands of Jewish people make up their own communities in places as far and wide as Argentina, Germany, Brazil, South Africa, China, and India.  They come from different cultures, in different colors, and make up a veritable rainbow of world Jewry.

There is another interesting element to this though.  Through immigration, globalization, and sometimes intermarriage, many of the world’s Jews have made it to the United States where Hillels, Synagogues, and JCCs are dominated by white Ashkenazi Jews.  Many face the reality of simultaneously belonging culturally and religiously while standing out racially in their communities – a scenario not entirely new to the Jewish people; Mizrahi Jews (of Middle Eastern descent) faced similar challenges upon moving to parts of Israel that were largely dominated by Ashkenazi Jews (of Eastern European descent).

In this issue, you’ll find stories about dual heritage Jews, intermarried Jews, converted Jews, and descendants of immigrant Jews who face this reality head on and aren’t afraid to talk back.  So read, listen, expose yourself to something new, and celebrate with us the diversity of the Jewish people.

- Alef

Photo by Groume, licensed under Creative Commons.

Jewish Diversity Posts:
To Fit In, In Two Worlds
Anghel Ha’Bris
Alef Profiles: Y-Love
Half-and-Half
La Mishpacha
Song in Self
Black Jew Syndrome
I Am Party Mix
So…I Confuse You
Changing the Face of Judaism/Judaism’s Changing Face

Tags: ashkenazi, diverse, Ethiopian Jews, Indian Jews, mizrahi, Philippine Jews

Posted by Emily.Comisar@birthrightisraelnext.org, Friday, May 28th, 2010, 4:47 pm, Diverse Jews.