ABOUT THE CENTER
The College of Charleston’s Center for Southern Jewish Culture seeks to broaden public knowledge and inspire conversations about the southern Jewish experience.
Generously funded by the Pearlstine/Lipov family in 2014, it brings together the resources of the College’s Jewish Studies Program, Addlestone Library’s Jewish Heritage Collection, and The Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina.
The College of Charleston’s Center for Southern Jewish Culture hosts a wide array of speakers, films, and other events.
Our Charleston Research Fellowship Program supports works of scholarship, public history, and artistic production.
We partner with other organizations to help the public discover the rich history and culture of the Jewish South.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Michael Hoberman examines how the Jewish experiences of the American Revolution, slaveholding in the early republic and antebellum period, and westward migration have been imagined, commemorated, and frequently mythologized. Focusing on how historical relationships between Jews and Native Americans and Jews and Blacks are interpreted in light of current political developments, he suggests that the stories Americans tell about early American Jews help to shape their views about the racial and cultural complexities of the American present. He analyzes current-day popular representations of Jewish history in the United States, including historical novels and the curation of early synagogues and house museums. Finally, he introduces several current-day descendants of early American Jews whose genealogical backgrounds inform their sense of identity. Timely and original, Imagining Early American Jews shows how non-specialists’ interpretations and representations of the past are key to understanding Jewish American history and identity. Doors will open for brunch at 9:00 AM.
NEWS AND NOTES
Center Talk, Spring 2019
I spent this semester working with my students in “Southern Jewish History” to curate an exhibition of southern Jewish family photographs.
Center Talk, Fall 2018
In January, we hosted journalist Sue Eisenfeld, who gave a Sunday talk on her current project, “A Yankee’s Journey Through the Jewish South.”
Center Talk, Spring 2018
The Center treated Charleston to Joselit’s eloquent meditation on the Ten Commandments in the American South.
Center Talk, Fall 2017
Kinky Friedman, Texas singer & politician, gave a free performance & participated in an on-stage conversation about his life & career as a Jewish southerner.