Blacks and Jews: Let’s Confront Our Differences

For the umpteenth time, Jews are under attack, facing rising global antisemitism.  This has increasingly taken the form of anti-Zionism. Anti-Black racism and White nationalism are also on the rise.  It seems like this is a good time for Blacks and Jews to find each other again.  To help each other again.

While many have been lamenting the erosion of the relationship of the Black & Jewish communities ever since Dr. King was killed in 1968, few have publicly discussed the differences that challenge us. However, as Dr. King notes in his last book, Where Do We Go From Here?, Blacks and Jews have much in common, but we also have  “towering differences”.  Both sides have ignored these towering differences for decades, opting instead for feel good moments, photo ops, press releases and vacuous platitudes.  We have, metaphorically, been playing the fiddle while Rome has been burning.  We can’t afford to keep tip toeing around tough conversations we need to have. I doubt the relationship between Blacks and Jews will improve until we begin to acknowledge our towering differences, and discuss how we will manage those differences in a way that improves our trust for each other.  So, what are some of those differences?

1. Let’s start with slavery. Jews and Blacks were both enslaved for hundreds of years—we have that in common.  But we differ on the nature of the slavery suffered and its lasting effects.  According to Exodus 1:8-14, the Egyptians enslaved the Jews because they were afraid that if war broke out, the Jews would side with an enemy of Egypt.  The Jews were not enslaved because of some supposed inherent inferiority, but Blacks were. White slave masters claimed that Blacks were inherently inferior, so that Blackness because stigmatized.  Unlike Ashkenazi Jews who could change their names and assimilate, Blacks stick out like a raisin in a bowl of cornflakes—we can’t hide from our oppressors.  Jews were enslaved in one spot—Egypt, with their families intact.  Blacks were taken from one big spot—Africa—separated from family members, put on ships, brought to a foreign land, stripped of language, culture and religion, forced to accept a new religion (that taught White Supremacy, by the way), bred like livestock, forced to have sex to make babies who were later sold off as slaves, and prevented from learning how to read and write.  When the Jews were freed from slavery, they were freed into a wilderness for 40 years—no picnic for sure.  Black weren’t set free into a wilderness, but into cities and towns, dominated by our former masters, into a society that had been taught that Blacks were inferior and physically dangerous.
2. You’ve got to crawl before you walk. According to Exodus, the Jews wandered the dessert for 40 years before they got to the promised land. During those 40 years, the Jews got on Moses’ last nerve, complaining about everything, worshipping a golden calf, bickering and grumbling about one thing or another. Those 40 years were rough, but they helped prepare the Jews for freedom.  In those 40 years, the Jews were not under the thumb of the Egyptians, and thus got a chance to learn how to live independently of their former masters. They had time to unlearn the slave mentality that was pounded into them for hundreds of years. They had time for the older generation who lived in slavery to die off, leaving behind a younger generation that knew only freedom, and therefore didn’t long for the fleshpots of Egypt. Blacks had no such transition period.  We went from slavery, to being set free to live among a White population that viewed us as savages who needed to be tamed.  Even if we had gone back to Africa, that would’ve been no remedy because Whites had already invaded Africa and colonized most of it, reducing native Africans to near slavery in their own land.
3. Are all stereotypes created equal? Have you ever heard someone say:
   “Hey, you better watch out for those Blacks, because they killed Christ?”
   “Hey, you know those Blacks control Hollywood and the media.”, or
   “Hey, you know, those Blacks have a secret conspiracy for world domination” or,
   “That guy is a tough negotiator, he really tried to Black me down on my asking price”.

I’ve never heard anyone associate those stereotypes with Blacks, but rather with Jews.  So, what are the stereotypes associated with Blacks? That Blacks are:

1. lazy
2. stupid
3. dirty
4. dishonest
5. sexually insatiable
6. have superhuman strength (Black men)
7. have a propensity for violence (Black men).

As you can see, both Blacks and Jews are stereotyped, but the stereotypes are different, and they’ve led to the two groups being treated differently.  Jews have been accepted all over the world, and permitted to achieve professional and financial success.  After achieving such success, Jews have often felt that they are completely accepted by the non-Jews around them—Jews are made to feel safe and secure.  Sadly, this sense of security is often found to have been illusory, as Jews then find themselves suddenly being slaughtered and hunted like dogs in the street, for no reason other than simply being Jewish.  Blacks, on the other hand, haven’t been exterminated just for being Black.  We’ve been kept alive so we can serve the role for which we were kidnapped and brought here—the role of perpetual servant.  We’re found disproportionately in slums, cemeteries, and prisons, but there’s been no attempt kill us merely because we’re Black.  There’s never been any time in the last 400 hundred years where Blacks have been lulled into thinking that Whites fully accept us.

The oppressors of Jews have tried to get Jews to give up their Jewishness and assimilate into the dominant tribe.  The Egyptians wanted Jews to be like Egyptians.  The Greeks wanted the Jews to be like the Greeks.  Christian Europe wanted Jews to become Christians.  Jews have been fighting against forced assimilation.  Blacks, on the other hand, have embraced our oppressor’s language, culture and religion, but we’re still being excluded.  So, Blacks are fighting against forced exclusion.  Jews may worry about losing their Jewish identity, but they no longer have to worry about being excluded from mainstream American economic life.  Blacks on the other hand,  still worry about getting sufficient access to jobs, healthcare, education, capital and being treated fairly by law enforcement.

4. The civil rights movement ain’t what it used to be. When Dr. King was alive, the relationship between Black and Jews was much stronger than it is today. What may explain this? Perhaps it’s combination of two things.  First, when Dr. King started his career as a civil right leader in the 1950’s, Jews had just come out of the Holocaust.  Every Jew and non-Jew in the world was keenly aware of the consequences of unchecked bigotry, and thus Blacks and Jews were very sympathetic and empathetic to each other’s plight.  Second, during the 1950’s and 1960’s, Dr. King was fighting an obvious enemy.  Bigotry was perfectly legal, and people boasted about discriminating against Blacks, Jews and others.  This blatant bigotry, while despicable, provided civil rights leaders with an easy target—the laws and official written policies of discrimination and exclusion.  It was relatively easy to organize protestors against open official bigotry.  Times have changed.  We’re now 80 years removed from the Holocaust, which is a distant memory for the younger Jewish generation.  American Jews, until the last couple of years, felt relatively safe, and worried little about antisemitism in America.   Jews have been allowed to integrate into mainstream White America, but Blacks have been largely told to wait at the front door while the bouncer checks our ID.  And we’ve been waiting since the 1960’s for the promises of the civil rights movement and civil rights laws to become a reality.  In the 1950’s and 1960’s, Blacks and Jews were both excluded from mainstream White America, but now Jews (at least Ashkenazi Jews) have been permitted to walk into the front door of the building, while Blacks are still standing there being questioned by security.  It’s noteworthy that Jews aren’t the only group that have been let in the front door.  Irish, Italians, Germans, Polish, Catholics, Asians, Mexicans.  Every racial and ethnic group has received a warmer reception by security than Blacks have received.  At this point, most Blacks view Ashkenazi Jews as nothing more than Whites who don’t eat pork—part of the oppressor class, who benefit from, and make apologies for, White Supremacy.  No where is this Black perception more evident than the conflict with Israel and the Palestinians.  Most Blacks view Israel as an apartheid state, and feel that Zionism is racism, and that Ashkenazi Jews aren’t the real Jews of the Bible, but are “fake jews”.  On college campuses all over America, Black students overwhelmingly side with Palestinians against Israel. Black college students overwhelmingly support BDS initiatives against Israel.  I recall seeing a news story about this years ago.  A reporter asked Black college students why they support BDS, and the Black students said that one of the reasons they don’t support Israel is because Israel oppresses women.  That’s not a misprint, you read that correctly.  Black students think that the Arab Muslim world treats women more fairly than Israel does. This is an example of how little Blacks and Jews understand of each other’s current struggles.  Today, antisemitism often takes the form of anti-Zionism.  Anti-Black racism is no longer done openly with signs declaring that Blacks are unwanted, it’s done with a smile—but it’s done nonetheless.  Both Blacks and Jews are struggling with how to fight bigotry that is cleverly camouflaged.  That means we have to develop new strategies, new techniques and new slogans.  Just as a the covid virus mutated and required new booster shots, bigotry has mutated, and requires new plans of attack.
5. What have you done for me lately? Decades ago, HBCU’s (Historically Black Colleges & Universities) offered jobs to Jewish professors at a time when mainstream White colleges were not. Many Jews not only marched with Dr. King, but gave generously to Dr. King’s movement. But that was over 50 years ago.  What have Blacks and Jews done for each other lately?  What do we need each other for right now? What’s the one issue that Jews most wish to get Black support on?  What’s the one issue that Blacks most wish to get Jewish support on? What exactly does that support look like, how can it be measured?  When’s the last time we simply asked each other such questions?
6. We don’t have to fully understand each other’s pain in order to help each other. Given the differences in the Black and Jewish experiences, we should expect that we will not always agree on what our priorities should be, or about what our strategy to fight bigotry should be. The only way to build a stronger relationship is for both communities to learn more about each other, and to be patient and forgiving with each other. I can’t expect Jews to see the world through the eyes of Black people, nor Blacks to see the world through the eyes of Jews.  But we can decide that we will believe each other about what our experiences have been, and do our best to accommodate each other’s concerns even if we don’t fully understand them. I’m a man and I’ve never been pregnant.  I don’t know what it’s like to have a baby growing in my stomach.  But if a pregnant woman tells me she has a craving for chocolate covered pickles and she wants me to get her some right away, I can choose to accommodate her request, even though I’ve never experienced pregnant cravings. Blacks and Jews must be willing to support each other sometimes even if we don’t fully understand each others’ positions.  For example, Blacks have been complaining for decades about police brutality, but until videos went viral, most Whites simply refused to believe us. It would’ve been nice if we got more public support from the Jewish community before the George Floyd case.  On the other hand, many Blacks are quick to accuse Israel of being an apartheid state without so much as listening to the Israeli perspective first, or offering an alternative plan for how Israel can live peacefully with neighbors who don’t acknowledge Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.  For the last 50 years it appears that we have mistrusted each other, and both sides are waiting for the other side to do something miraculous to earn each other’s trust. Both sides are waiting for the other side to make the first move. This hasn’t worked. We need to begin by trusting each other, and let mistrust be earned. This means we must be vulnerable with each other.

So, as Dr. King’s final book asks, “Where Do We Go From Here?”  If we’re willing to focus on our differences with patience and humility, then we’ve got no place to go but up.  We’ve got to ask the tough, direct questions.  At this time in history, what specifically do Blacks and Jews need from each other?  What specific issues do we need the other to champion, and what does that look like? As our leaders discuss things with each other, let’s remember that our towering differences make it impossible for us to view the world that same way.  It’s unreasonable for us to require agreement on everything in order to work with each other.  As we wrestle with our challenges, let’s remember that we’re ultimately on the same side, even if it doesn’t always feel like it.