JCC: We Are Black Jews with Roni Malkai

We Are Black Jews by Roni Malkai

We Are Black Jews: Ethiopian Jewry and the Journey to Equality in Israel is a deeply moving memoir by Roni Fantanesh Malkai that blends personal experience with collective history. With honesty, clarity, and grace, Roni shares her own story, beginning with a perilous journey on foot from Ethiopia to Sudan as a child, and continuing through her family’s aliya to Israel. Her voice is both intimate and powerful, offering readers a rare firsthand account of what it means to live at the intersection of Black and Jewish identity.

Through her storytelling, Roni brings to life the history and resilience of the Beta Israel community: their unwavering devotion to Judaism over centuries of exile, and their struggle for dignity and recognition in modern Israeli society. She does not shy away from confronting painful truths such as racism, marginalization, and cultural displacement – but she does so with hope and a deep belief in the power of belonging. We Are Black Jews is not just a personal journey – it’s an invitation to communities all over the world to grow in our understanding and embrace the full diversity of the Jewish people.

Roni Fantanesh Malkai holds an MA in Public Policy and Government (with honors) from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and an LLB in Law from Tel Aviv University. She has served as Director of the Public Forum for Youth Villages and Boarding Schools and as Spokeswoman for the Ministry of Welfare & Social Services. Malkai is a lawyer and a public figure in Israel and a media professional regularly contributing to Israeli media and focusing on social issues. She also writes for Haaretz, where she explores topics related to social change and conflict. Her experience as a journalist and news anchor at Channel 10 sharpened her skills in communication, storytelling, and public engagement.

Roni Fantanesh Malkai was born in the village of Wufargif, located in the Welkait region of Ethiopia. She was just two and a half years old when her family left their village to begin the arduous journey through Sudan, a path taken by many Ethiopian Jews during that period. Roni’s work We Are Black Jews is endorsed by the President of Israel, Isaac Herzog who is Malkai’s former boss at the Ministry of Welfare. He called it “a supremely human story, one that has a great deal to teach Israeli society, and indeed any human society”. In addition to her writing, Roni is frequently invited to speak at events and lead training sessions on social justice, race, and equality, offering valuable insights that resonate within a variety of communities.