Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Mizrahi Jews, a major Jewish ethnic group from the Middle East and North Africa.
Mizrahi Jews
The Latest
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Life Finally, A Safe Space For Sephardic And Mizrahi LGBTQ Jews
On a Saturday night in May, somewhere in Crown Heights, a group of young professionals in their 20’s and 30’s swayed back and forth to the classic Mizrahi songs they grew up on — everything from Ofra Haza to Cheb Khaled. The gathering, set with mood lighting and a perfect sound system, was attended by…
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Fast Forward Purim Project Tells Women Of Color’s Stories, In Esther’s Honor
Inspired by the upcoming Jewish holiday of Purim, the new campaign #ShareHerStory shares the stories of modern Jewish women of color who are working to create a more inclusive and thriving Jewish community in various ways. As the name sounds, #ShareHerStory shares individual stories of powerful Jewish leaders in short, easy-to-read vignettes as a way…
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Life The Kurdish Immigrants Who Built Israel
In Israel, there is often a singular narrative told about immigration and the creation of the Jewish state: Ashkenazi pioneers came from Eastern Europe at the end of the 19th century and built the country. They established kibbutzim, moshavim, and cities like Rishon LeTzion, and created pre-IDF militias. Streets in every city in Israel bear…
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Culture This Dating Site Connects Jews Of Middle Eastern Descent
NEW YORK (JTA) — These days, there’s a dating site or app for just about any group you can imagine, from men with beards (and their admirers) to a farmers-only site. There’s even an app matches people based upon shared dislikes — as in “I saw you, too, hate paying extra for guacamole.” But one day it dawned upon Cynthia Shamash,…
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Opinion Can Amir Peretz Finish What Israel’s Black Panthers Started?
To understand the polarization in Israeli society between the center and the periphery, the divide between Ashkenazim and Mizrahim, right and left, we must look back to the often fraught relationship between economically dominant Kibbutzim and neighboring “development towns.” Since the establishment of the state of Israel, this dominance was characterized by segregated living conditions…
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Opinion For Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews, Whiteness Was a Fragile Identity Long Before Trump
“I have lived for 26 years under the illusion that I am unconditionally white…. Recently I have started looking at my face and going, ‘Oh man, do I look too Jewish?’” Sydney Brownstone, the reporter who voiced this question in a recent Blabbermouth podcast, is not alone in wondering this. Many Ashkenazi Jews who have…
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Opinion If A-Wa Wants Real Mizrahi Revival, It’s Time To Get Political
A-Wa, the groundbreaking band made up of three Israeli Yemenite sisters who famously sing in Arabic, has just released its first album “Habib Galbi” in the U.S. The band was listed by Rolling Stone last week as one of the 10 New Artists You Need To Know. The group’s first music video, “Habib Galbi,” has…
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Opinion Jews of Color Get Personal and Political at First-Ever National Gathering
If you want to get black Jews, Mizrahi Jews and a Palestinian-American Muslim to burst into tears at the same time, invite Yavilah McCoy to talk about hair. Speaking at the opening plenary of the Jews of Color National Convening, which took place May 1–3 in Manhattan, McCoy gestured at the woman beside her, a…
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