By Rabbi Asher Lopatin, Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor
Under the leadership of the Exodus Leadership Forum (a project of political analyst Van Jones) and Shari Redstone’s Family Foundation, Pastor Carnel Richardson and I were invited to represent our Washtenaw Black-Jewish Coalition at a national gathering of Black and Jewish leaders specifically engaged in deepening and re-invigorating Black-Jewish Alliances. With over 100 leaders from around the country attending the convening in Miami, we heard inspiring words from Jones and Redstone, and, more significantly, we were inspired to see the personal relationship between a Black thinker and visionary and a Jewish thinker, visionary, activist and philanthropist. The gathering started on a Thursday afternoon at the end of May and went through Saturday, with Shabbat activities for Jews and gentiles alike. Crucially, an important segment of the Black-Jewish Alliance is Black Jews, who provide an important bridge between the communities and who challenge both communities, as well.
My partner at the convening, Pastor Carnel H. L. Richardson, who is the co-chair of our Washtenaw Black-Jewish Coalition reflected on the convening:
“The National Convening on the Black and Jewish Alliance… in Miami, Florida provided the boost of intellectual and sociocultural energy that I need during this unique time that we are living in. The conference provided a safe space to acknowledge the work that is already being done to unite the Jewish and Black communities, and it also provided an opportunity for leaders to be challenged to do more! We must do more!”
The convening harnessed the power of Jones’ masterpiece initiative, Exodus Over Dinner, where Black folks and Jewish folks (and Black Jewish folks!) go around a table answering provocative questions to bring them closer together and ready to partner in changing the landscape of America and beyond. With the help of local volunteer Cindy Bank, we in greater Ann Arbor are looking forward to bringing Exodus Over Dinner to the UM student community, with the hope of helping students create their own Black-Jewish Coalition in parallel to our county-wide Coalition.
One of the fascinating requirements to attend the convening in Miami was that a “White/Jewish” leader who signed up was required to go with a Black partner—and vice versa. It was so meaningful to see the great partnerships that came together, from Philadelphia (Pastor Carl Day and Jason Holtzman) to Chicago (Chris Harris and Lee “Rosy” Rosenberg) to our very own Ann Arbor (Pastor Carnel Richardson and myself) at the convening – and then to see those pairings be separated and mixed in with everyone else at Exodus Over Dinner where there was intentional seating to get us to meet new leaders, Jewish and Black. In addition, we were assigned to meet over the three days of the convening two new leaders – a Black leader and a Jewish leader – that we did not know. So, the goal was to expand our vision and the reach of the Black-Jewish Coalition nationally.
Cindy Bank, formerly of the Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan, was the one who first introduced Rabbi Lopatin to Exodus Over Dinner. Bank is excited to implement the program with the leadership of students and the broader Ann Arbor area community. She sums up the need:
“Blacks and Jews have such a deep, rich history that is mostly unknown by younger generations. It’s so important, especially these days, to make sure this shared history is known. We need to rebuild our bond and work together to protect the civil rights that we previously fought for, and combat both anti-semitism and anti-black racism.”
To learn more about the Washtenaw Black-Jewish Coalition or to get involved, please contact me at asher@jewishannarbor.org.