These past few weeks have been harrowing for Black Jews.
It’s not bad enough that we’ve had to deal with police brutality and the endless social media posts reminding us that our lives can end at the whim of any police officer or “concerned citizen” who decides to weaponize 911. It’s not bad enough that we have to deal with the same systemic racism that plagues our non-Jewish brothers and sisters as well.
This week would see a resurgence of anti-Semitism from some prominent voices in the Black community, all speaking in a bigoted unison. First, Ice Cube would take to Twitter posting anti-Semitic memes and quotes. Then DeSean Jackson would be taken to task for his anti-Semitic pro-Hitler pro-Farrakhan tirade, the Eagles wide receiver would end up apologizing to numerous Jews and Jewish organizations. After this, #JewishPrivilege would trend on Twitter, the brainchild of white supremacists and trolls, leading Jewish celebrities and others to tell their own stories of antisemitism.
Now, not to be outdone, we have Nick Cannon.
Nick Cannon’s now-infamous Professor Griff (of Public Enemy fame) video from his Cannon’s Class podcast has now racked up nearly half a million views. In it, he espouses the view that Black Americans are the “true Hebrews” – a view espoused by Farrakhan and some Black nationalists – and that white people are savages, and more animalistic than their Black counterparts. Cannon would be sacked by ViacomCBS for his anti-Semitic statements (though not, glaringly, his anti-white ones), with his show Wild N Out being cancelled immediately.
Black celebrities such as Ice Cube, Diddy, and Dwyane Wade would all back Cannon up on Twitter, with Diddy offering Cannon a spot on Diddy’s Revolt TV. Nick Cannon would trend for days on Twitter, with calls from some Black fans to support him during this time by buying his music or by making it a point to watch Wild N Out. Dwyane Wade for his part would “clarify [his] words“, saying that he backed Cannon only with regards to the ownership of his successful TV series.
Seeing this support from Black celebrities and influencers is simultaneously disheartening and infuriating. Equally infuriating are some of the posts calling for dialogue “between” the black and Jewish communities – or statements that Blacks and Jews have “nothing to do with each other”. All of these sentiments erase the existence of Black Jews.
Professor Griff and other ostensibly pro-Black commentators baffle me when they trot out anti-Jewish language: the lowest estimate of the number of American Black Jews sits at roughly 420,000, or 1% of the American Black population. In all likelihood, this number is likely closer to 2% of the American Black population. Any reference to the Black community is also a reference to hundreds of thousands of Jews. When an anti-Semitic figure from the Black community is held up by the community as a symbol of empowerment, it’s saying that our concerns and safety don’t matter, at best. At worst, it’s dismissing us as nonexistent.
Black Jews are affected by anti-Semitism as much as non-Black Jews, and it hurts especially pointedly when the bigotry is coming from one’s own community, especially at a time when we are all supposed to be coming together against the common enemy of white supremacy. It does the Black community no favors to marginalize elements of itself. We need to begin a process of interfaith dialogue within the Black community: any talk of Black empowerment and unity must include Black Jews as well, as well as Black members of non-Abrahamic faiths.
Hearing Black influencers, and non-Black influencers, speak about Jews as if 1/5 of the American Jewish community is “not in the room” is painful to witness, much less be subjected to. We need to increase visibility of Jews of Color, and stop talking about the Jewish community as if it were a white one, when we know it to be anything but.
