Dear ones,
Firstly, I apologize for my vocal absence in the wake of the news of the rollback of reproductive rights last week. As many gathered this past Shabbat morning to celebrate one of our own becoming bar mitzvah, so many more were gathering at Cal Anderson Park and in countless locations around the land to protest and raise their voices and spirits in this ongoing fight. Access to abortion is a Jewish value. Yashar koa'ach - may there be strength as these efforts for justice continue.
And on that same morning in Buffalo, NY (Wenrohronon Territory, Haudenosaunee Land) the hometown of my maternal grandparents, mother, aunt, uncles, and cousins, 10 Black residents in a supermarket were murdered in a targetted attack spurned by a [Christian] white nationalism that we know all too well as a multiracial Jewish community. From this same well of anti-Black racism so too spews forth antisemitism, misogyny, tranphobia, Islamophobia, and more.
Our friends at Ammud: Jews of Color Torah Academy are offering space for Black Jews tonight (Wed, 5/18, 5:30-6:30pm PT) and space for Jews of Color tomorrow night (Thu, 5/19, 5-6pm PT) to connect and process. I wanted to make sure to share them with you all as soon as I heard about them, encourage our Black and BIPOC Jews to attend, and invite us all to support those spaces with our gifts to Ammud and these organizations raising money for the families of the victims in Buffalo.
In the meantime, may this day of the omer - the 32nd day, netzach she'b'hod [endurance that is in serenity] be one of persistence, of resilience, and of the small victories of continuing to breathe, continuing to find serenity, and continuing to continue. The Hebrew word for heart, lev, is the numerical value 32, and on this day, while my heart is broken along with the world, may it continue to beat and rhythm for justice.
May it be so for us all,
R' David
Firstly, I apologize for my vocal absence in the wake of the news of the rollback of reproductive rights last week. As many gathered this past Shabbat morning to celebrate one of our own becoming bar mitzvah, so many more were gathering at Cal Anderson Park and in countless locations around the land to protest and raise their voices and spirits in this ongoing fight. Access to abortion is a Jewish value. Yashar koa'ach - may there be strength as these efforts for justice continue.
And on that same morning in Buffalo, NY (Wenrohronon Territory, Haudenosaunee Land) the hometown of my maternal grandparents, mother, aunt, uncles, and cousins, 10 Black residents in a supermarket were murdered in a targetted attack spurned by a [Christian] white nationalism that we know all too well as a multiracial Jewish community. From this same well of anti-Black racism so too spews forth antisemitism, misogyny, tranphobia, Islamophobia, and more.
Our friends at Ammud: Jews of Color Torah Academy are offering space for Black Jews tonight (Wed, 5/18, 5:30-6:30pm PT) and space for Jews of Color tomorrow night (Thu, 5/19, 5-6pm PT) to connect and process. I wanted to make sure to share them with you all as soon as I heard about them, encourage our Black and BIPOC Jews to attend, and invite us all to support those spaces with our gifts to Ammud and these organizations raising money for the families of the victims in Buffalo.
In the meantime, may this day of the omer - the 32nd day, netzach she'b'hod [endurance that is in serenity] be one of persistence, of resilience, and of the small victories of continuing to breathe, continuing to find serenity, and continuing to continue. The Hebrew word for heart, lev, is the numerical value 32, and on this day, while my heart is broken along with the world, may it continue to beat and rhythm for justice.
May it be so for us all,
R' David
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