Community Education & Resources

If we are serious about building a Jewish future grounded in belonging, we must stop treating reports like endpoints and start seeing them as starting points...What ultimately matters is not how we define and measure Jewish multiculturalism, but how we live it. 

You’ve heard of the rabbi shortage, but have you heard of the untapped rabbinical talent pipeline? From my vantage point leading Ammud: The Jews of Color Torah Academy, there are clear solutions in recruiting, cultivating and elevating untapped talent.

In this post October 7th world we are all managing sets of -isms that are making us feel less safe moving through the world as openly Jewish people. As a result, a narrative has emerged over the past several months that has called for a separation from ‘communities of color’ who are perceived as not being in ideological lockstep with the ‘Jewish community.’ This perspective assumes both that each community is monolithic in their views and that full agreement is a condition to working towards our shared liberation project.

Tiyuv partnered with TischPDX, JOC Collective, and Jews of Color Initiative and launched a survey to gain valuable insights into the demographics and interests of JOCs in the PNW, including affiliations, interests, and engagement in Jewish communal life.

This report is the first of its kind to comprehensively explore the unique experiences, challenges, and resilience of LGBTQ+ Jews of Color in Jewish spaces. “Threads of Identity” is both a love letter to LGBTQ+ Jews of Color and all the parts of who they are, as well as an offering of actionable steps for the Jewish community to honor the full spectrum of its members by creating spaces where all Jews feel like they belong and that fully embrace LGBTQ+ community members of Color.

We invite Jewish communal leaders and community members to engage deeply with our 2023 research grantees’ findings. Their research brings clarity to intersectionality in various sectors of Jewish life, painting a beautifully expansive picture of JoC experiences.

Future vision of an institution and wider community that has overcome systemic racism and all other forms of oppression. • Institution's life reflects full participation and shared power with diverse racial, cultural and economic groups in determining its mission, structure, constituency, policies and practices • Members across all identity groups are full participants in decisions that shape the institution, and inclusion of diverse cultures, lifestyles, and interest

Among the Asian Americans speaking up during this time, Asian American Jews are sharing their stories of anti-Asian racism so other Asian Jews can navigate this challenging time collectively and so the white Jewish community can become more educated on the ways in which anti-Asian bigotry continues to show up in the Jewish community and beyond. These 6 articles detail the lived experiences of Asian-Jewish identity, the need for solidarity, and a call for change—directly from the voices of fellow Jews.

While discussing their experiences as people of color in Jewish spaces and in the community as a whole, I heard many experiences similar to mine – and one which was almost exactly identical. Hearing the experiences of these panelists affirmed many of my own experiences as a Jewish person of color, and this was incredibly validating. I am thankful to have been a part of this safe space to both listen and share with confidence.