May 07 2008
First African American woman convert to be ordained as a Reform Rabbi, reports the JTA. Below is an excerpt but if you wish to read the full story, check it out on JTA. \
Raised by Pentacostal parents, Stanton-Ogulnick spent her childhood and young adulthood as a spiritual seeker, making the rounds of various Christian denominations before finding her home in Judaism. She converted more than 20 years ago.
“People look at me and ask if I was born Jewish,” she says. “I say yes, but not to a Jewish womb. I believe I was at Sinai. It’s not as if one day I scratched my head and said, hmm, now how can I make my life more difficult? I know — I’ll become Jewish!”
Stanton-Ogulnick made her choice to join the Jewish community as an adult, well aware of the difficulties that might arise. Her daughter Shana, now 13, didn’t get to choose; she was dipped in the mikveh as an infant.
The year they spent in Jerusalem, Stanton-Ogulnick’s first year as an HUC student, was the most difficult. Shana, then 7, faced daily prejudice at school.“She was beat up, and once was literally kicked off the bus,” her mother says with quiet anger. “We’d been in Israel three months and her only friend was a cat.”
One day, Shana came home from camp beaming because one of the other children held her hand.You can read the rest here.
Hat tip to Jewschool and Kol Ra’ash Gadol where I found the article
Loading ...
As a fellow ger of African-American heritage with rabbinical aspirations, Ms. Stanton is an inspiration to me. I feel many converts who are passionate about Judaism, observant and knowledgeable are not taken as seriously by the majority of less observant Jews, simply because of their skin color. It is almost as if we need to know more, and do more just to be considered one of the tribe whereas a white convert can seamlessly blend in. I am often subjected to the question "were you born Jewish?" or "when did you convert?" which goes against the law of reminding a ger of his past. I doubt a white person would receive the same torrent of questions. This isn’t necessarily the case in the U.S. where all streams of Judaism, at least ostensibly, welcome observant converts regardless of color. However in Israel, the Jewish homeland, where it means so much to be Jewish, we get awkward looks just walking down the street while wearing a kippah. I once read the story of a young man from the upper west side who underwent a Charedi conversion and moved to Israel to study at Yeshivah. While the observant community accepted him as a Jew and welcomed him, his secular neighbors referred to him as kushi, a pejorative similar to the "n" word on a regular basis. Eventually, he came back to New York where he said he could be more fully Jewish without insecurities. Hopefully, Ms. Stanton will make an impact on that end. I am terribly sorry about what happened to her and her daughter ba’aretz. B’hatzlakhah!
Amitai,
Believe me, white converts get the gamut of questions as well, though I can understand how a person of color — including the vast amount of Asian Jews (many of which were adopted at birth and raised Jewish) — would perhaps get a couple more. But it’s across the board, trust me
I think that the questioning of those of African descent is less so since the mass aliyah of Ethiopian Jews and with the growing amount of African-American communities of Jews (we have one here in Chicago!).
But never fear, you don’t stand alone. We all stand together!
Shalom!
Chavi
This is a wonderful story. I am a black woman who converted to Judaism less than a year ago. It is always beautiful to see other women of color choosing Judaism, though Ms. Stanton-Ogulnick feels the same as I. Once I “found” Judaism, I realized it was where I’d always belonged.
This site is wonderful by the way. The experience of Jews of Color is very important to convey, though I agree with Chavi, no matter what your color is people look and have questions. It just so happens that when you are a person of color, the questions are more prevalent, and the shock and awe abounds.
Kol ha-kavod Rabbi Stanton.
You are the future. Sadly, the racists among our Jewish people are still here. However, they are the past, and are dying out.
As a born Jew, I am gratified and thankful to you beyond words for your choice many years ago to become Jewish, and for your decision to become a rabbi. May you go from strength, b’ezrat Hashem.