Jews Talk Racial Justice - Ep. 80: Cookies, Impact, and False Competition

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Inspired by the holiday of Purim, April and Tracie use the practice of giving mishloach manot or Purim baskets, to unpack the difference between intention and impact. (Who knew you could learn so much from fruit-filled cookies?) They also interrogate the relationship between Vashti and Esther, and use them as a metaphor for differently-positioned Jewish Leaders of Color today. The megillah (Scroll of Esther) positions them as competitors, but we imagine what it would look like if they recognized they have more to gain by working together and rejecting the externally-imposed division between them.

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Jews Talk Racial Justice - Ep. 79: On Purim, Joy, and Liberation

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April and Tracie think about some of the lessons of Purim: hidden identities, the power of 'no,' the power of being in the right place, the importance of joy, and the links between joy and liberation.

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Jews Talk Racial Justice - Ep 71: Tu B’Shvat and MLK Day: Deepening the Roots of Racial Justice

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As MLK Day and Tu B'Shvat overlap this coming week, April and Tracie unpack the lessons we can learn from trees and their growth in our racial justice journeys. They get into the nuances and differences between treating the symptoms of oppression and injustice – often addressed through “service” – and diagnosing and healing the root causes. And, they think about what we can do to genuinely honor Dr. King’s legacy.

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Jews Talk Racial Justice - Ep 57: The Shmita Year, the Year of Release

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In our current pandemic-, racism-, and climate-change-ravaged times, April and Tracie talk about the Shmita Year, or Sabbatical Year, which we just began at Rosh Hashanah. How does one live out the values of the Shmita year when most of us are no longer working as farmers in the fields? They discuss how we can use this particular moment to lean into its themes, reconnect with the Earth, and find greater balance in what we endeavor to control and what we allow to happen organically.

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Jews Talk Racial Justice - Ep 56: Simchat Torah, Essential Letters, and Why ALL of Our Life Curricula is Needed

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In this week’s episode Tracie and April discuss some of the traditions related to the holiday of Simchat Torah (lit. “Joy of Torah”). The symbolism of the holiday--appreciating the totality of the Torah and starting the cycle anew--illuminates for ways we can do the same with our own life and racial justice curricula.

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Jews Talk Racial Justice - S2E11: Transition, Trajectory, and Trellises

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April and Tracie explore the ways the messiness of spring contributes to its beauty and potential. The also notice how structure--whether the practice of counting the Omer, a vine's trellis or their online course Awareness Accelerator--can support the important and messy work of growth.

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Jews Talk Racial Justice - S2E5: On Purim, Joy, and Liberation

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“Whether it's joy, peace, contentment, power, calm - what if we didn't have to wait? What if that experience could be less conditional on external circumstances? And how many more circumstances could we start to shift over time if we were able to stay in that place?” - April N. Baskin

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