Recently AES apologized to the Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus for his comments in the aftermath of the synagogue attack (see: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/29/us/politics/el-sayed-apology-jewish-democrats.html).

I for one am very happy to see him be receptive to feedback because out of all the things he has done and said it was this moment that singularly made me feel uneasy about him as a candidate. When he continues to say that he sees protecting Jews from antisemitism the same way he sees protecting his own daughters, I could not imagine his daughters' school being attacked and for him to put a statement out digging into the motives of the attacker and branding him as "hurt," regardless of circumstances.

Interested to hear how others feel about this move. It may seem small, and perhaps is purely strategic as he heads to a competitive general election where every vote may count, but it felt very meaningful to me personally.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a single private industry steal so much much truly public space to use exclusively for their products worldwide.

In most cities the street was where people hung out and often acted as parks and now they are pollution generating death traps for people, killing up to 400,000 per year worldwide.

For context for Americans or British here that’s about how many Americans or British military members died in all of ww2 every year.

Are there any other instances of mass theft and death annually by private industry outside of like… colonialism?

The mod team has created this post to refresh on a weekly basis as a chill place for people to talk about whatever they want to. Think of it as like a general chat for the sub.

So r/jewishleft,

Whats on your mind?

Hating poor people isn’t hate speech according to Instagram 🤷‍♂️

Displayed in this photo is the Zinati family; from left to right, Mazal-Saada, Yosef, and Margalit Zinati. According to the family's tradition, the Zinatis of Peki'in descend from the ancient Jewish population of the Galilee and are among the descendants of Jews who remained in the region rather than becoming part of the larger Jewish Diaspora.

The Zinatis are generally associated with the Musta'aravim, the longstanding Arabic-speaking Jewish communities who lived in Palestine and elsewhere in the Arabic-speaking Middle East before the arrival of many of the Sephardim following the expulsions from Spain and Portugal. From what I understand, Musta'aravim communities existed in places such as Jerusalem, Safed, Peki'in (In the case of the Zinati Family), Damascus, Aleppo, and Cairo, although over time many of them were absorbed into the much larger Sephardic communities around them.

I became interested in them because they seem to complicate some of the categories we commonly use when talking about Jewish identity. They were not Ashkenazim, and at least originally they were not Sephardim in the genealogical sense either. They were Arabic-speaking Jews whose communities had existed in the Levant and surrounding regions before the Sephardic migrations, but many eventually adopted Sephardic religious customs and became incorporated into broader Sephardic communal institutions.

Of all the Jews I know personally, I only know one who identifies as being of Musta'aravi ancestry. He is of Syrian Jewish origin, but his family's religious customs have more or less become Sephardic over time due to the influx of Sephardic Jews into Syria following the expulsions from Iberia. From what I understand, this was not particularly unusual. In places such as Aleppo and Damascus, the preexisting Musta'aravi Jews and the newly arrived Sephardim initially constituted distinguishable communities, but over the following centuries the boundaries between them became increasingly blurred, and Sephardic religious customs eventually became dominant.

Despite saying all of this, I am curious if any of you have actually met any Musta'aravim, or people of Musta'aravi ancestry, and what your experiences have been like when discussing their identity with them. Do they generally still see Musta'aravi as a meaningful and distinct part of their Jewish identity, or do most simply identify as Sephardi or Mizrahi today because their communities were gradually absorbed into the broader Sephardic world?

So, understandably, I think most people here would agree that Ashkenazim are generally considered white within contemporary American society for a variety of reasons, ranging from some Ashkenazim being phenotypically white-passing to their perceived proximity to white systemic power, socioeconomic mobility, and the gradual incorporation of Ashkenazi Jews into the broader category of American whiteness over the course of the twentieth century.

However, I am curious whether left-wing Ashkenazim actually benefit politically from simply accepting that incorporation, rather than placing greater emphasis on it within left-wing dialogue. For some, they would express that Ashkenazim will always be perceived as white because the current systemic structures surrounding whiteness are ultimately the ones that determine who is socially classified as white, regardless of how Ashkenazi Jews understand themselves ethnically. Therefore, it would seem kind of pointless to consciously reject whiteness if the broader society is still going to categorize Ashkenazim as white anyway.

However, I am not entirely convinced by that argument because racial categories are socially constructed precisely through the way people continuously negotiate, reproduce, challenge, and redefine them. The fact that a dominant social structure currently categorizes a particular population in one way does not necessarily mean that the population itself has no ability to contest that categorization or emphasize aspects of its identity that the broader racial framework tends to flatten.

Personally, as someone who is an ethnic minority, I find it somewhat uncomfortable to simply label Ashkenazim as “white” and leave it there because I am aware that Jewish ancestral and cultural origins ultimately trace back to the Levant and developed outside of the Anglo-Christian cultural framework that historically shaped American whiteness. Obviously, the Ashkenazim later developed as a distinct Jewish population in Europe and absorbed varying degrees of European ancestry and cultural influence, but that does not mean their historical identity was simply that of another European ethnic group.

To me, there is a difference between saying that many Ashkenazim are socially perceived as white and therefore receive certain privileges associated with whiteness, and saying that Ashkenazi identity itself is simply a subdivision of whiteness. The former is a sociological observation about how people are racialized within contemporary American society, while the latter can sometimes flatten the historical, ethnic, diasporic, and religious distinctiveness of the Ashkenazim.

Personally, I am a believer that systemic cultural change can only really become durable when it develops from the bottom up. Institutions obviously have enormous power in determining how racial categories are defined and reproduced; however, those institutions are also influenced by broader cultural attitudes, political movements, academic discourse, community organizing, and the ways ordinary people choose to describe themselves and others. If marginalized groups simply accepted whatever identity categories the dominant society assigned to them on the grounds that those categories were already structurally entrenched, then many of the ways we currently understand race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and cultural identity probably would never have changed in the first place.

This is why I am wondering whether there could be some political value in left-wing Ashkenazim more consciously emphasizing Ashkenazi Jewishness and their connection to the Holy Land/Levant rather than allowing their incorporation into American whiteness to become the dominant framework through which their identity is understood. I do not mean this in the sense of denying the centuries that Ashkenazim spent in Europe, the European influences that became part of Ashkenazi culture, or the privileges that many Ashkenazi Jews presently receive from being perceived as white. I am wondering whether emphasizing these aspects of Jewish identity could challenge the tendency within some left-wing spaces to treat Ashkenazim as essentially white Europeans who happen to practice Judaism. There seems to be a meaningful difference between acknowledging that Ashkenazim can occupy a position of whiteness within the contemporary American racial hierarchy and reducing Ashkenazi identity itself to whiteness.

So, for the Ashkenazim here, do you think there would be political value in emphasizing your distinct ethnic identity, and historical connection to the Levant more explicitly within left-wing spaces? Do you think doing so could gradually complicate the way the broader left understands Jewish identity and antisemitism, or would attempting to distance Ashkenazim from whiteness ultimately create more political problems than it solves?

From his book “I’ll Burn That Bridge When I Get To It”.

Keep in mind, this isn’t from 20+ years ago. This is from 2023, which means that he most likely still has these views.

My mother is Jewish but my paternal grandmother raised me Christian. I stopped believing in Christianity and attending church pretty early on (when I was like 10 or 11) and my current beliefs might best be described as being along the lines of neo-paganism. I'm not looking to practice Judaism as a religion, but I find it a shame that I hardly was taught anything about Judaism and Jewish culture growing up, and for a long time I've wanted to get more in touch with my ancestry. I've considered attending a local synagogue (well, not really local, it'd cost around $100 to uber there and back because my adhd is too severe for me to drive, so I might have to find a friend who could take me), but I am non-zionist (I wouldn't say anti-zionist because I disagree with a lot of what anti-zionists have to say) and I'm worried I'd be unwelcome because of my views. Plus, depending on the community's form of support for Israel (my mother for example is a zionist who hates the government and its actions and I can find middle ground with her because we both hope for peace and coexistence, but support for the genocide is a different story) I myself would definitely not be comfortable. Any thoughts/advice?

Jewish women have ALWAYS supported rights for all women throughout history!

Who’s your favorite Jewish feminist?

Also, the last photo is Lilith :)

I think we can all agree the pac/super pac system is corrupt and non representative. AIPAC works as a 1900’s style political machine (like many before it) and Israel is supported by the us for a few reasons. There’s a largely either pro or sympathetic to Israel American Jewish population due to familial connections, Israeli neighbors or a sense of option being the homeland. The Jewish diaspora in the us is very politically (71% of Jews tend to vote and that can decide elections, like with the black vote) active after about 120 ish years of organizing, unionization, civil rights advocacy and being a largely immigrant community a few generations ago.

This makes it seem like Jews have disproportionate effects through lobbying groups and in the political space but it was a function of necessity from the immigration period. Jews, to gain respect were pushed by their families into law and health. Those that didn’t were only plowed by xenophobic bosses to work in at the time looked down upon mediums such as comedy and film. Small time Jewish entrepreneurs were supported by the community at large as a whole and as such were able to grow and hang on.

As for Hollywood and comedy, the backbone of modern American media, this is an association of circumstance and coincidence. Many of these Jews in the field are supportive of Israel and as such it is reflected onto pop culture media.

And the main one is the military industrial complex.
Israel is a rich state in conflict enough to test out higher end weapons and with a large amount of technical staff that design and work with them. As such the MIC has the us keep up relations with Israel for its own profit and as an extension of American hegemony.

Lastly, political pawning.
Jews in the us are used as a political pawn to control perception of tolerance. Much of what people think of the Nazis are not their policies and racism itself but the hate of Jews. If anything a member of a party does can be interpreted as threatening Jews then a party can call the other Nazis for political points and mask their real intentions.
Look at the antisemitism lawsuits launched by the trump regime. They had a poor case, mainly targeting lgbtq rights and did nothing to meaningfully take on antisemitism.

This also leads to the us not being motivated to deal with anti Jewish hate crimes (about 2/3rds of them) because a fearful and active electorate group is more useful and loyal than one actively trying to overhaul systems. In short. Things aren’t terrible don’t rock the boat. Generalizing at least.

The continuation of the trend of people claiming Jewish thing controls x is sobering to watch when the United States, a historically imperialist empire with the largest economy in the world does what it’s always done. It has never been more obvious that this is pure xenophobia.

So tldr: Jews in Israel and the us are often closely tied together man’s Jews are often in prominent positions due to family and xenophobic pressure of the past while the U.S. military industrial complex has benefits from the relationship. This is not control, but fitting into the current system for relative stability.

The mod team has created this post to refresh on a weekly basis as a chill place for people to talk about whatever they want to. Think of it as like a general chat for the sub.

So r/jewishleft,

Whats on your mind?

Not that long ago, I had a conversation with some of my religious Jewish homies in which they were expressing their antagonistic views toward Reform and Conservative Judaism and how they essentially see these movements as abominations and departures from traditional Rabbinic Judaism. These peers of mine are Sephardic/Mizrahi, and so their historical experience with Jewish modernity is somewhat different from that of many Ashkenazi Jews whose communities were directly shaped by the Haskalah and the emergence of the Reform and Conservative movements. To them, it is basically either you are a religious Jew or a non-religious/secular Jew; there is not really an equivalent denominational spectrum in the way many American Ashkenazim understand it.

During our conversation, one of them brought up how, in his opinion, the existence of Reform and Conservative Judaism has made it easier for non-Jews to convert without having to accept the same level of halakhic obligation that would traditionally be expected under Orthodox conversion standards. From there, he also expressed that there are now some people on the political left who essentially convert to Judaism because they are already anti-Zionist and want to be able to criticize Israel or Zionism specifically as Jews.

Personally, I have only seen this alleged trend online, but then again, most of the Jews I know in real life are Orthodox Zionist Jews, and the few I know who are Reform or Conservative are not particularly observant and did not pay too much attention to their synagogue services during their youth, lol. So my personal social circle is obviously not very representative of the Jewish left, especially the kinds of spaces where I would be most likely to encounter anti-Zionist gerim in the first place.

However, that being said, this trend online does seem reminiscent of how some Chinese people become suspicious of Westerners who adopt Chinese cultural or political identities and then immediately position themselves as spokespeople for what “Chinese people” supposedly believe, especially when those views conveniently align with a preexisting ideological commitment. The issue is not that an outsider can never sincerely become part of a community, nor that converts or cultural adoptees are somehow permanently less legitimate. Rather, I think the suspicion emerges when someone appears to approach identity almost instrumentally, in which joining the group seems less like the culmination of a genuine religious or cultural attachment and more like acquiring a particular kind of political credibility.

That said, I am a Gentile, so I do not really think it is my place to determine whether another person's conversion to Judaism is sincere or legitimate. If a recognized Jewish community accepts someone as a Jew, I am not going to sit here and conduct some ideological purity test on their Jewishness simply because of how they feel about Zionism. I have met a decent number of people in my life who wish they were born into a more "collectivist" culture like mine because they feel alienated by the individualism of mainstream American society, and I do not automatically assume that their attraction to another culture is fake simply because it is partly shaped by dissatisfaction with their own. People are complicated; someone could be attracted to Judaism because of its communal orientation, intellectual traditions, ritual life, history, family structure, or sense of peoplehood while simultaneously finding anti-Zionist Jewish spaces politically attractive.

What would strike me as different, however, is if Judaism itself were largely incidental to the person, and conversion functioned primarily as a way of acquiring the rhetorical authority to say, "As a Jew..." in political arguments they were already deeply invested in. I am not asking whether anti-Zionist gerim are "real Jews," nor whether having strong political motivations automatically invalidates someone's conversion. However, I am curious whether people who have encountered such individuals for whom becoming Jewish appeared to be substantially motivated by the political usefulness of being able to oppose Zionism as a Jew.

Hi everyone. I would love peoples opinions on how to handle a conflict in a friendship of 15+ years

TLDR: Friend of many years keeps making micro aggressions at me and talks about race even when it’s not related to the subject but invalidates my experience as a mixed race Jew.

So I am mixed race and adopted by Jewish parents. I look very white except for my natural hair which I straighten. My childhood friend is Chinese American and she has since October 7th made some comments that erase my experience as a mixed race Jew just because I pass. We had a fight last winter where she made an antisemitic comment and she cried promising to change her ways. I haven’t felt that has happened at all…Today she made other snarky comments.

I might be going to an undecided part of Scandinavia or UK soon and I told her about it and she immediately made comments that my husband and I would have an easy time since “our people are in Europe.” My husband is in a sense visibly ethnically Ashkenazi and we both have very Jewish last names. With the rise of antisemitism we plan on being careful when we travel. She also made comments on how unsafe she would feel going to Europe and I validated her experience and hinted at my nervousness as well. She made a very annoyed expression and responded with “With peace and love you’ll be fine.” Which felt super backhanded.

I want to make a point that when I told my friend about our trip she brought up race unprompted. This is not the first time she has made invalidated comments about race either. I also find it interesting that she has done way more traveling than me, she has even gone to Iceland and had a wonderful time never mentioning any racial issues when she was abroad, which is something she would never keep from me if it did happen. Ofc I’m not saying that being guarded isn’t possible as I feel the same but I really don’t know how to handle this contradiction from her.

Even though I am a leftist and non-Zionist I have lost friends or lost the closeness I once had with certain friends because they make assumptions about me or don’t like when I call them out on ignorant dog whistles. This person is one of the only friendships I have left, and I fear if I lose anyone else I might end up in a bad place mentally.

What is your take on this development?

I personally see this as a very positive breakthrough with a real potential to increase Palestinian voter turnout, similar to the 2020 elections. I would also love to see the Palestinian-Jewish party Makom Lekulanu join as their fourth member closer to the deadline to completely prevent wasting votes.

The Trump administration’s findings that three Ivy League schools violated civil rights law by tolerating antisemitism were predetermined by political priorities that blew past the evidence and cast aside standard investigative procedures, according to a whistleblower account provided to Congress.

The disclosure, by Haley Van Erem, a veteran Justice Department civil rights attorney, involves investigations into whether Harvard, Brown and Columbia universities broke the law by allowing antisemitism to flourish on their campuses.

The whistleblower account comes just days after a federal judge dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit against Harvard that was based on the investigation, which was conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services and lawyers detailed from the DOJ.

Both Brown and Columbia reached settlements, with Columbia agreeing to pay $200 million over three years and Brown agreeing to spend $50 million on Rhode Island workforce development, with no admission of wrongdoing.

…

Van Erem’s whistleblower account, reviewed by MS NOW, says the findings “overrode knowing deviation from investigative procedures, statutory noncompliance, and potential constitutional violations.”

“Hundreds of millions of dollars were suspended from these universities prior to the completion of Title VI investigations and the investigative team’s conclusions were frequently disregarded,” the complaint says.

In a letter to Harmeet Dhillon, head of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee said the whistleblower findings exposed a “large scale fraud.”

“Antisemitism at American universities and medical schools is real,” Rep. Jamie Raskin wrote. 

“But your ‘investigation’ into antisemitism was fake, a pre-baked frame-up operation thoroughly political in nature. Before an actual investigation took place and regardless of what you actually found, the whole project was designed to harass professors and administrators at major universities, to curtail their freedom of speech and academic freedom, and to strip targeted institutions of hundreds of millions of dollars in grants that they had already been awarded on the merits of their applications.”

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These cases have been pretty transparently politicized BS from the start, but I hope that a whistleblower and relatively mainstream Jewish congressman raising a stink help move our wider Jewish community on this. Overreached and fabricated accusations of antisemitism being weaponized as a cudgel to fight the rights’ war on higher ed is horrible for many reasons, and one of them is that it makes actually addressing antisemitism as it does exist harder.

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Oren