Have you ever wondered how Jews of color are treated by the Jewish community? Can you imagine there being “racism” among the Jewish community? How are Jews of color in your own congregation treated? Can we all be more inclusive and accepting?
The Sisterhoods of The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah and Congregation Beth Shalom will present “Racism in the Jewish Community: The Uncomfortable Truth” at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 2, via Zoom. The guest speaker is Ilana Kaufman, executive director of the Jews of Color Initiative.
Registration is $5 per household. To register go to sisterhood.bethshalomkc.org/events/ and scroll down to “Racism in the Jewish Community: The Uncomfortable Truth.” The Zoom link will be provided on Feb. 1.
A B’nai Jehudah congregant, who is a Jew of color, suggested that Hilary Fried, programming vice president for the congregation, invite Kaufman for a Zoom meeting. So, Fried and Shari Barr, B’nai Jehudah Sisterhood president, began the planning, along with Congregation Beth Shalom’s Sisterhood president, Shira Wajcman.
With about 1100 family units at B’nai Jehudah, a Reform congregation, and about 700 family units at Beth Shalom, a Conservative congregation, Fried, Barr and Wajcman developed questions for Kaufman.
Barr feels it is important to focus on topics that are relevant today.
“We felt that racism in particular, and also racism as it relates to Judaism, is very topical and of real importance,” she said. “While sisterhood does a really good job of being friendly and social and providing opportunities to get through COVID, we also do a good job, and hold it as very important, to bring topics that have the ability to improve our culture.”
Barr said reaching out to Beth Shalom was a gesture to say this is relevant not only to the sisterhood of B’nai Jehudah, but to all congregations and the entire Jewish community.
While none of the three women had any examples of racism against Jews of color in the greater Kansas City Jewish community, they still wondered about its welcomeness.
“I can’t say that it might be openly racist. I know that in our congregation we have Jews of color and I think it would be interesting to know how friendly people are toward them,” Fried said.
Barr feels like B’nai Jehudah has been very engaged and inviting, “but maybe this is a litmus test.”
“Racism and inciting racism are something our Jewish community is very concerned with and is active in,” she said. “I think [B’nai Jehudah] is very open and welcoming.”
Wajcman believes Beth Shalom is also welcoming to Jews of color. “It’s just to raise awareness that at some places this is an issue.”
Barr added, “We have in our Jewish community people who are willing and want to get engaged and involved in fighting racism, and so while I believe we do a pretty good job now, we can do a better job and this is raising awareness in how we do it.”
Kaufman’s website, jewsofcolorinitiative.org/, indicates she reaches out to all Jews of color — blacks, Asians, Hispanics, anyone who is nonwhite.
The questions the three women asked Kaufman to address in her Zoom presentation are:
How can the Jewish community across America be inclusive to Jews of color?
How do you recommend welcoming a person of color into your Jewish family as families have become more diverse?
Do you see it differently in the way Jews of color are accepted among the Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jewish movements?
What is the Jewish response to racism against Jews of color in the Jewish community?
Who counts as Jewish, who doesn’t and who decides?
Fried also asked Kaufman for her perspective on the way Jews of color are treated in the Midwest, the East Coast, the West Coast and the South, but Kaufman said she didn’t have any data on that.
“I thought that was kind of interesting because she lectures and works with groups all around the country,” said Fried.
Prior to joining the Jews of Color Initiative, Kaufman was the Public Affairs and Civic Engagement director for the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Community Relations Council.
The Jews of Color Initiative is a national effort focused on building and advancing the professional, organizational and communal field for Jews of Color. The Initiative focuses on grantmaking, research and field building, and community education.
Kaufman received her bachelor’s degree in sociology from California State University-Humboldt and her master’s degree in educational pedagogy from Mills College.
