“Hard conversations” to build bridges

Panel at UAB explores Black-Jewish relations

By Kiara Dunlap

The Black-Jewish Relationship: How do we bridge the gap?

This question framed the discussion as African Americans and Jewish Americans came together on Jan. 24 for an impactful dialogue at the University of Alabama at Birmingham under the theme, “Shared Histories: A Conversation about Black-Jewish Relations in Birmingham and Beyond.”

The event came amid controversy and tensions between the two communities over social media posts by Kanye West and basketball star Kyrie Irving that have been widely viewed as antisemitic.

An announcement before the event highlighted its importance: “Conversations about Anti-Semitism and Anti-Black racism have become more prominent today with the emergence of far right and white supremacist groups being more visible in the everyday media cycle… This critical conversation will focus on these shared histories and how understanding the history of these communities specifically in Birmingham will help move both communities forward with a shared interest.”

Hosted by the UAB Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the UAB Institute for Human Rights, the program was moderated by Tina Kemp Reuter, director of the institute and director of UAB Social Science and Justice Research.

Panelists included Barry McNealy, Professor of African American Studies at UAB; Margaret Norman, Director of Programming and Engagement at Temple Beth-El; Joyce Shevin, Director of Community Relations for the Birmingham Jewish Federation, and Dr. Jonathan Wiesen, a Professor of History at UAB. They were from different backgrounds and different walks of life but shared a passion for unity and harmony between the two communities.

The session began by acknowledging the rhetoric and conversation seen today in the media, which often depicts frayed ties between Blacks and Jews.

When asked about important moments in history that have made this conversation relevant for today, Wiesen mentioned the 2015 Dylan Roof shooting at the Emanuel AME church in South Carolina and the 2018 Robert Bowers shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. These two tragedies against these communities were committed by Anti-Black and antisemitic extremists.

Wiesen said “it’s easy to see Blacks and Jews together as victims, sort of like frightened minorities.” For him, “they just remind me… of how much the fates of American Blacks and Jews have been intertwined, and how we have to stand together against racism and antisemitism both individually and sometimes together.”

In Birmingham, there is a shared history of discrimination.

“This city’s history goes back far with the idea of white supremacy. White supremacy was not just something that was a detrimental force to African Americans, it was a detrimental force to the Jewish community in the United States as well,” said McNealy. “When we look at these two communities and we look at the shared nature of white supremacy, it goes hand in hand with antisemitism.”

In Birmingham, both communities were targeted by bombings and attempted bombings during the Civil Rights era. In the 1950s and 1960s, Black communities were attacked multiple times.

In 1958, 54 sticks of dynamite were discovered at Temple Beth-El. The explosives were found before they detonated. There were prominent members of the congregation who were supporters of the Civil Rights movement.

“Many Jews began empathizing more with the local Black community, thinking about what they could do to help. This was a turning point for some people who had not previously been active in issues of human rights. Those who already had ties saw the interconnection of what these two communities faced and thus became more inspired to act,” said Temple Beth-El’s Norman.

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The panel also reflected on the current state of relations between the two communities in Birmingham.

Shevin described the work of the Birmingham Jewish Community Relations Council, whose purpose is to “build bridges of understanding to our broader communities, combat antisemitism and advocate for public policy and social justice issues.”

She referred to a quote: “We will never be together until we are in each other’s homes and at each other’s tables.” Shevin talked about her involvement in a dialogue group that brings Black and Jewish women together to build friendships, but also to have “hard conversations.”

Shevin believes that a controversy several years ago involving the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute honoring Angela Davis created challenges. This episode created friction and distrust between the two communities.

One consistent theme throughout the discussion was the need to have honest conversations, especially if the two communities want to have good ties. “We learn in uncomfortableness… To get to a perfect union we have to get uncomfortable,” said McNealy.

Kiara Dunlap is interning jointly for Southern Jewish Life and The Birmingham Times in partnership with Miles College, where she is a senior communications major.

Leading global law firm Dentons issues statement condemning antisemitism

By Richard Friedman

Through an initiative that originated in Birmingham and Huntsville, Dentons, a worldwide law firm, recently released a statement condemning antisemitism and affirming its concern over the increase in hostility and hatred toward Jews.

Steven Brickman, a long-time Birmingham Jewish community volunteer leader and a shareholder in Dentons Sirote, which is part of the firm and based in Birmingham, initiated the statement, encouraging the national firm to make its opposition to antisemitism widely known.

Michelle Levin, a shareholder in Dentons Sirote’s Huntsville office, also was involved. She is the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors.

The two Alabama lawyers encouraged Dentons management and inclusion and diversity leaders to focus on antisemitism, including attacks on Israel that are clearly antisemitic, in addition to other forms of discrimination.

Brickman also noted that the recent Dentons statement mentioned some of the most recent and egregious examples. Mentioned are the widely reported incidents involving Kanye West and the University of California Berkeley law school — the latter a prime example of how discriminatory attacks on speakers who advocate for Israel are inherently antisemitic. The statement, Brickman noted, was distributed to the firm’s 5000 U.S. lawyers.

“Given the escalation in antisemitic rhetoric and conduct across the U.S. region, it was important that Dentons, the world’s largest global law firm, issued a clear condemnation of antisemitism and hate in all its forms,” Tobin McClamroch, managing partner of the U.S. region, told Southern Jewish Life. “The rise of explicit antisemitic statements and conduct by well-known voices is alarming, dangerous and must be condemned.”

Over the past few years, as antisemitism has grown, “many prominent firms released statements demonstrating a shared commitment to denouncing antisemitism from across the profession,” said McClamroch. A list of some of those firms appeared on JewishInsider.com in May 2021.

McClamroch said it was important for Dentons to issue a statement in view of the firm’s connections with historically Jewish law firms that have become part of the Dentons network. “We have numerous lawyers, leaders and business services professionals across our firm who are Jewish. Legacy firms in our U.S. region, Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, and Sirote & Permutt, were founded by lawyers whose Jewish heritage was a barrier to entering other established law firms at that time. This legacy is an important part of who Dentons is today.”

Added McClamroch, “By issuing this statement, we are standing in solidarity with our Jewish colleagues and making it clear that Dentons does not tolerate antisemitic words, actions or any other hateful and discriminatory conduct from our people, our clients or our communities. Our hope is that this statement assists our Jewish colleagues in feeling heard and supported during these challenging times.”

The statement came out in November and referenced the observance of Kristallnacht, the series of pogroms in 1938 launched by the Nazis against Jews of Germany. “It is with great distress that we continue to witness an escalation in antisemitic rhetoric and conduct across the U.S. While hateful speech is a disappointing reality, the rise of explicit antisemitic statements and conduct by well-known voices is alarming, dangerous and must be condemned with even stronger fervor.

“Dentons wholeheartedly condemns hate in all its forms, and we stand with our Jewish colleagues and clients in rejecting this dangerous and unacceptable rhetoric — be it Kanye West’s tweets; the actions of nine student groups at Berkeley Law School in seeking to ban speakers who support Zionism; or the threats of violence against New Jersey Synagogues.

“Sadly, hate crimes have dramatically risen since 2020, including a 34 percent increase in reported antisemitic incidents in 2021 as compared to 2020, and the highest number on record since the Anti-Defamation League began tracking antisemitic incidents in 1979. These incidents, along with the similar rise in hate crimes against other groups, including African, Asian and Muslim Americans and the LGBTQ+ community, are rooted in racism and xenophobia, and intended to divide us.

“Many colleagues are experiencing fear and pain, and we call upon the strength of our Dentons community to provide support, empathy, allyship and understanding to Jewish people right now.”

(Disclosure: Richard Friedman’s son, Samuel, is a shareholder at Dentons Sirote.)

Food festivals making their return

Chabad of Huntsville opened the season with a kosher pop-up deli on Feb. 20.

The Jewish Food Festival at Montgomery’s Temple Beth Or has a wide range of Jewish dishes and a Treasure Market. This year’s event will be held on Feb. 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dishes prepared by Beth Or members include beef brisket, veggie plates, latkes, stuffed cabbage rolls and quajado, a hot spinach pie. There will also be challah, rugelach, strudel and mandel bread. Carnegie Deli cheesecakes will also be available, along with chocolate covered cheesecake bites. Frozen items for takeout include matzah ball soup, cabbage rolls, quajado, kugel and challah.

Hebrew Union Temple in Greenville will hold its Old Fashioned Corned Beef Deli luncheon on March 2 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tickets are $15 and are available at the door.

The Unified Jewish Congregation of Baton Rouge will have its 39th annual corned beef sandwich sale, March 12 and 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Individual box lunches make their post-Covid return, with the choice of corned beef, tuna or egg salad, along with a homemade brownie, chips, pickle and a mint. Orders of five or more sandwiches can be delivered to local businesses, preordering is required. There are also build-your-own kits to make five sandwiches, pre-order required.

Birmingham’s Levite Jewish Community Center announced its Jewish Food and Culture Fest will be on April 30 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

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