Jews Talk Racial Justice - Ep 76: Jewishness is a particle AND a wave

in ,

Tune into this episode and read the full shownotes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

QUICK EPISODE OVERVIEW

In today’s conversation, April and Tracie unpack white Jews’ whiteness, the history of race and Jewish racialized identities, and the benefits of getting clear about who is actually in the ingroup. Using metaphors from physics to sanctuaries, we talk about historic and contemporary intersections of the social construct of race and lived identities of Jews. 

All of our episodes have closed captioning.
Access the audio version with a full transcript here.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  1. At the beginning of the episode, April tells us that race is a social construct. What does this mean (as opposed to a biological construct or a natural fact, for example)? Have you heard this or learned about this before?

  2. The “are Jews white?” question is one that has come up more recently, especially in light of the controversy surrounding Whoopi Goldberg. Is this a question you have been asked or have thought about before? What do you make of it? What are your first reactions or thoughts when you hear that question?

  3. Tracie encourages us to think of Jewishness as a particle and a wave. How do you understand this comparison?

  4. April notes that our conceptions of a social group and how they are categorized can change over time, especially in the case of Jews who are from Europe. Is this true in your experience? Are there other examples you can think of where identities morph over time?

  5. April and Tracie say that they don’t want us (Jews) to be defined how the Nazis defined us and make a clear distinction between how oppressors can define groups versus how they define themselves. How do the two overlap in your experience, whether regarding Jewishness, Blackness, or any other social identity category? How do how oppressors define groups impact how we define ourselves and why do you think that happens?

SHOWNOTES

Find April and Tracie's full bios and submit topic suggestions for the show at www.JewsTalkRacialJustice.com

Learn more about Joyous Justice where April is the founding and fabulous (!) director, and Tracie is a senior partner: https://joyousjustice.com/

Support the work our Jewish Black & Native woman-led vision for collective liberation here: https://joyousjustice.com/support-our-work

Learn more about Racial Justice Launch Pad and watch our free masterclass:
https://joyous-justice.mykajabi.com/registration-page-74797390-07fe-42d0-b340-4f91077480d9?cid=3265a927-dad0-4c41-baa1-24e3f4386574

Join our private Facebook group, Joyously Pursuing Racial Justice:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/590922415522750

Learn more about how race is a social construct: 
https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/06/16/how-fluid-is-racial-identity/race-and-racial-identity-are-social-constructs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiwieME2tis
https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/05/what-we-mean-when-we-say-race-is-a-social-construct/275872/
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/race-is-a-social-construct-scientists-argue/

Listen to our episode about conditional whiteness:
https://www.joyousjustice.com/blog/jews-talk-racial-justice-ep-45

Tune into our episode about Whoopi Goldberg’s Holocaust comments:
https://www.joyousjustice.com/blog/jews-talk-racial-justice-ep-75

COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS?

Let us know in the comments below!