Anti-Racism Resources

Hillel Letter & Statement (George Floyd/BLM)

Combating racism is a multi-faceted practice. While we know we cannot simply think and feel that racism is wrong, there are many different things we can do to be actively anti-racist as individuals, within Jewish community, and in partnership with the greater campus community. Judaism teaches us that education is a life-long process, requiring a lot of listening, reflection and humility. This is true for activism as well. We hope the resources below are helpful to our community.

1.

If you aren’t sure where to start, we recommend starting with the campus resources, and then reading, watching or listening to some of the info in the links below, which include Jewish connections to this work.

2.

If you are ready for more, HERE is a compilation of resources created by others. We will be adding resources to this page as we learn of them. Please feel free to share your favorite ones with us.

3.

If you would like to talk through these resources or get more involved in anti-racism work through Hillel, please contact: Rav Lisa at lstella@umich.edu or Sarah Pomerantz at sbpomera@umich.edu.

Campus Resources:

START HERE: Check out this guide of 10 Ways to be Anti-Racist from MESA (Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs)
Op-ed from Dr. Robert Sellers, U of M Chief Diversity Officer
Statements from other University Leaders and Stakeholders.
Statement from Central Student Government

Here are just a few books and educational materials that are great resources to build an educational foundation:

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo.
How To Be An Antiracist by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi.
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo, PhD.
National Museum of African American History and Culture Portal: Talking about Race
Scaffolded Anti-racist Resources

For more on Jewish Identity and Racial Identity:

ARTICLE: Skin in the Game How Antisemitism Animates White Nationalism by Eric Ward.
BOOK: How Jews Became While Folks and What that means about Racism in America by Karen Brodkin.

Jews of Color and Jewish-specific resources:

We stand together in support of people of color both within and beyond the Jewish community. Here are some specific ways to read, listen, and learn from Jews of Color:

Organizations

I’m ready for more!

There are many guides to be anti-racist already compiled that we are linking here. These lists are live documents that have been compiled by multiple people and are not directly connected to or specifically endorsed by Michigan Hillel.