Stacey Aviva Flint knows that Jews of Color lack communal leaders in which they can see themselves reflected. As Bonai Shalom’s Executive Director, she hopes that she can be a role model for Jew of Color interested in a similar career field.
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As the first Black Jew or Jew of Color to serve on the 5-person board of the Weinberg Foundation, Pretlow has catalyzed discussions and actions around investment in racial equity in philanthropy in the Jewish community.
Queer Mikveh Project wants all humans to feel sacred, and their new JoC leaders are expanding on the mission of QMP to create inclusive spaces for engaging in traditional ritual.
Questioning the Jewishness of Jews of Color or holding higher standards for observance or belief is a common barrier to Jews of Color feeling a full sense of belonging in Jewish communities, despite the high levels of atheism and secularism in the broader U.S. Jewish community.
In racial justice movements, caucus groups have been popular models for collective consciousness-raising—developing one’s awareness of, and ability to challenge, how racism plays out on both individual and structural levels.
As a Philadelphia-based non-profit organization, ALEPH focuses on deepening Jewish connection and spirituality through a trans–denominational approach known as Renewal.
In order to build a community focused on Earth, unity, movement, and Judaism, Silverstein wanted his collective to be guided by “the ability to connect to nature, to get your hands dirty, and then to have shared meals and to have access to delicious, nutritious, locally-resourced food together.”
“There’s so much energy required for someone to sit down and read something really dense,” Alana Chandler began. “But food? Food is something everyone needs to live. And not only is it necessary sustenance, but there’s so much culture and tradition infused into recipes. Recipes really tell a story.”
Healing is an essential element of moving toward a multiracial, anti-racist, and just future. In April 2021, Rabbi Mira Rivera partnered with the Bay Area Jewish Healing Center to provide space for what she believes are essential therapeutic and medical resources for the JoC community.
“I really believe that the best ways to which stories can change our lives is when people tell their own stories and really decolonize that idea of storytelling, especially within the Latino community that is so diverse and so complex,” said Lopezrevoredo. Her extensive background in ethnographic storytelling, gained through her research and studies in academia, shapes her approach to the life stories of others.