By Asher Lopatin
With the help of community leaders from the Black and Jewish communities, and with the inspiration of the Black-Jewish coalitions in Washtenaw County from the 1990s, a new Washtenaw Black-Jewish Coalition has been formed with twenty charter members (committee still in formation).
The charter members include individual leaders from organizations like the NAACP of Ann Arbor, the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor and its JCRC (Jewish Community Relations Committee), and The Network: Jewish People of Color of Ann Arbor/Washtenaw County. Religious leaders come from Metropolitan Memorial Missionary Baptist Church, Mount Olive Church of God in Christ, Temple Beth Emeth, Beth Israel Congregation, and the Ann Arbor Reconstructionist Congregation. Also involved are public figures like former State Representative Ronnie Peterson and Washtenaw County’s Racial Equity Officer, Derrick Jackson.
The formation of this coalition has been spearheaded in large part by Jewish Ann Arborite Nancy Margolis, a past president of the Jewish Federation and former Executive Director of both the Federation and the JCC. Margolis was instrumental in the creation of the previous iteration of this coalition over 30 years ago, and she has worked hard to bring it and its important work back. Earlier this year, Margolis and the JCRC successfully revived the Ann Arbor area Black-Jewish Freedom Seder, which drew nearly 100 participants from the Black and Jewish communities and helped lay the groundwork for the establishment of the current coalition.
Rabbi Asher Lopatin and Pastor Carnel Richardson address the crowd at the Black-Jewish Freedom Seder at the JCC in March 2025.
The missions of the newly established Coalition are:
- Speak out and oppose racism, antisemitism and other forms of ethnic-based hatred by being action- and solution-driven.
- Promote solidarity between Black and Jewish communities in all their diversity.
- While we will not necessarily agree on all issues, we will strive to identify and implement educational and social action advocacy initiatives, focused on Washtenaw County, that serve the causes and values of the Black and Jewish communities. Our focus is on Washtenaw County, but we remain cognizant of broader issues in our state and nation.
- Provide a forum for “difficult conversations” on issues where the Black and Jewish communities might have misunderstandings of each other, challenging perceptions of each other, or different visions for moving forward.
- Develop programming aimed at younger community members in order to identify and cultivate future leaders of the organization.
Nancy Margolis (L) and JCRC Chair Wendy Lawrence (R) on the Underground Railroad tour.
The first official event of the Coalition was held in late August and featured a bus tour of Washtenaw County’s Underground Railroad sites in conjunction with a visit to the African American Cultural and Historical Museum of Washtenaw County. The event surpassed bus capacity and was a meaningful day of learning and togetherness for all who attended.
Future events in the works include a historical tour of Jewish sites in the Ann Arbor area in coordination with the Jewish Historical Society of Michigan, as well as a town hall meeting bringing Jewish and Black communities together at the Metropolitan Memorial Missionary Baptist Church in Ypsilanti.
The Black and Jewish communities have a great deal to contribute to each other, and, together, have so much to contribute to the broader communities of Washtenaw County. The Coalition looks forward to being an important force of unity, advocacy and understanding in the great matrix of Washtenaw County.
For more information on the Coalition and how to get involved, please contact asher@jewishannarbor.org.
Rabbi Asher Lopatin is the Director of Community Relations at the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor.