Upcoming Events

Join Dr. Laura Arnold Leibman (Reed College) to discuss her most recent book, "Once We Were Slaves: The Extraordinary Journey of a Multiracial Jewish Family.” Dr. Leibman  follows Blanche Moses, a descendant of one of the most prominent Jewish families since the American Revolution, as she researches her family history. During the course of her investigation, Moses discovers her grandmother and great-uncle were not always the wealthy, free, white Sephardic Jews she believed, but were born as poor Christian slaves in Barbados. "Once We Were Slaves" brings to life the largely forgotten population of mixed African and Jewish ancestry and illuminates the fluidity of race, as well as the role of religion in determining racial identities in early nineteenth-century America.

Join University of California, Davis Professor Bruce D. Haynes for a look into the diverse origins of Jews of African descent in the United States. Dr. Haynes’s most recent book explores the full diversity of Black Jews, including bi-racial Jews of both matrilineal and patrilineal descent; adoptees; black converts to Judaism; and Black Hebrews and Israelites, who trace their Jewish roots to Africa. In doing so, he challenges the dominant western paradigm of Jews as white and of European descent, and offers insights into how Black Jewish individuals strive to assert their dual identities and find acceptance within their respective communities.

Film: Shared Legacies revisits the coalition and friendship between the Jewish and African-American communities during the1960s Civil Rights Movement. Pivotal events come alive through a treasure trove of archival materials narrated by eyewitnesses, activists, and leaders of the movement.