Actually, Commentary, There Are Tons Of Jews Who Are Also African-Americans
The latest edition of Commentary magazine, published online Friday, has already generated widespread criticism for its cover and its feature articles. The theme is “African Americans vs. American Jews,” set in all caps against a blood-red background.
.@commentary is a racist blight on American Jewish culture. pic.twitter.com/LvNdYTqsem
— Nathan Goldman (@nathangoldman) June 15, 2018
But there is a sizable number of African America Jews who may feel ignored by Commentary. According to estimates from the Pew Research Center’s 2013 “Portrat of American Jews,” 2% of America’s Jews describe themselves as black. By comparison, Pew’s study also found that 2% of America’s Jews were born in Israel.
Black Jews hail from many different parts of the Jewish world, from Orthodoxy, from the Hasidic world, from liberal denominations and from the Hebrew Israelite group.
Altogether, black Jews number about 106,000 people, according to Pew’s estimates.
Ari Feldman is a staff writer at the Forward. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @aefeldman
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO