(RNS) — After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza, some Black Jews noticed behavior from fellow Jews that made them feel like strangers in their own community. Whether receiving suspicious glances in a synagogue, having their “Shalom” greeting answered by a “thanks” or being asked what they considered intrusive questions on their views of the Israel-Hamas war, their fealty to the community seemed tested.
And outside Jewish spaces, exposure to antisemitism and remarks that conflated their Jewishness with support for Israeli government policies also felt alienating.
“Most people are not exposed to what it means to be Jewish and experience anti-Blackness and antisemitism,” said Ilana Kaufman, CEO of the Jews of Color Initiative, a nonprofit concerned with creating multiracial, anti-racist Jewish communities.
Though Jews of color have long struggled to have their concerns heard more broadly, the past two years have been even more difficult, she added.
Sensing a shift around these issues after Oct. 7, the Black Jewish Liberation Collective, a project of the left-leaning group Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, began a survey. The report released this fall suggests that many Black Jews have felt increasingly marginalized in their Jewish communities yet tokenized outside of them.
Meanwhile, as much of the Jewish world focuses fundraising on Israel and Jewish safety amid rising antisemitic incidents, some funding for racial equity initiatives has dried up. Advocates worry these trends could unravel t …