
Blacks and Jews in America
An Invitation to Dialogue
Georgetown University Press
Published on 1. April 2024
Book
Paperback/Softback
224 pages
978-1-64712-446-5 (ISBN)
Description
A Black-Jewish dialogue lifts a veil on these groups' unspoken history, shedding light on the challenges and promises facing American democracy from its inception to the present
In this uniquely structured conversational work, two scholars-one of African American politics and religion, and one of contemporary American Jewish culture-explore a mystery: Why aren't Blacks and Jews presently united in their efforts to combat white supremacy? As alt-right rhetoric becomes increasingly normalized in public life, the time seems right for these one-time allies to rekindle the fires of the civil rights movement.
Blacks and Jews in America investigates why these two groups do not presently see each other as sharing a common enemy, let alone a political alliance. Authors Terrence L. Johnson and Jacques Berlinerblau consider a number of angles, including the disintegration of the "Grand Alliance" between Blacks and Jews during the civil rights era, the perspective of Black and Jewish millennials, the debate over Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam, and the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Ultimately, this book shows how the deep roots of the Black-Jewish relationship began long before the mid-twentieth century, changing a narrative dominated by the Grand Alliance and its subsequent fracturing. By engaging this history from our country's origins to its present moment, this dialogue models the honest and searching conversation needed for Blacks and Jews to forge a new understanding.
In this uniquely structured conversational work, two scholars-one of African American politics and religion, and one of contemporary American Jewish culture-explore a mystery: Why aren't Blacks and Jews presently united in their efforts to combat white supremacy? As alt-right rhetoric becomes increasingly normalized in public life, the time seems right for these one-time allies to rekindle the fires of the civil rights movement.
Blacks and Jews in America investigates why these two groups do not presently see each other as sharing a common enemy, let alone a political alliance. Authors Terrence L. Johnson and Jacques Berlinerblau consider a number of angles, including the disintegration of the "Grand Alliance" between Blacks and Jews during the civil rights era, the perspective of Black and Jewish millennials, the debate over Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam, and the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Ultimately, this book shows how the deep roots of the Black-Jewish relationship began long before the mid-twentieth century, changing a narrative dominated by the Grand Alliance and its subsequent fracturing. By engaging this history from our country's origins to its present moment, this dialogue models the honest and searching conversation needed for Blacks and Jews to forge a new understanding.
Reviews / Votes
A masterpiece of outstanding scholarship in organization and presentation, Blacks and Jews in America: An Invitation to Dialogue is especially and unreservedly recommended for community, college, and university library American Contemporary Social Issues and Political Science/Race Relations collections. * Midwest Book Review *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Washington, DC
United States
Target group
US School Grade: College Graduate Student and over
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
Not illustrated
Dimensions
Height: 206 mm
Width: 132 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
272 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-64712-446-5 (9781647124465)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
02/2022
Georgetown University Press
€22.49
Available for download
Persons
Terrence L. Johnson is an associate professor of religion and politics in the Department of Government and a senior research fellow at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University. He is an affiliate member of the Department of African American Studies and the Department of Theology and Religious Studies. He is the author of Tragic Soul-Life: W. E. B. Du Bois and the Moral Crisis Facing American Democracy, as well as the forthcoming We Testify with Our Lives: How Religion Transformed Radical Thought from Black Power to Black Lives Matter.
Jacques Berlinerblau is a professor of Jewish civilization at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. He has published on a wide variety of issues ranging from secularism, to religion and politics, to Jewish American fiction, and higher education. He is the author of ten books, including Heresy in the University: The Black Athena Controversy and the Responsibilities of American Intellectuals, How to Be Secular: A Call to Arms for Religious Freedom, The Secular Bible: Why Nonbelievers Must Take Religion Seriously, Secularism: The Basics, and The Philip Roth We Don't Know: Sex, Race, and Autobiography. His writings have been featured or discussed in The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times, Washington Post, The Forward, CNN, NPR, and PBS among other media outlets.
Jacques Berlinerblau is a professor of Jewish civilization at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. He has published on a wide variety of issues ranging from secularism, to religion and politics, to Jewish American fiction, and higher education. He is the author of ten books, including Heresy in the University: The Black Athena Controversy and the Responsibilities of American Intellectuals, How to Be Secular: A Call to Arms for Religious Freedom, The Secular Bible: Why Nonbelievers Must Take Religion Seriously, Secularism: The Basics, and The Philip Roth We Don't Know: Sex, Race, and Autobiography. His writings have been featured or discussed in The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times, Washington Post, The Forward, CNN, NPR, and PBS among other media outlets.
Content
1. The House Is on Fire
2. Finding Our Affinities: An Overview of "Blacks and Jews" Dialogue by Jacques Berlinerblau
3. Liberalism: A Tragic Encounter between Blacks and (White) Jews by Terrence Johnson
4. Teaching Blacks and Jews in 2020
5. Interview with Professor Heschel
6. Interview with Professor Chireau
7. Talking to American Jews about Whiteness
8. The Loop and Minister Farrakhan
9. Secularism and Mr. Kicks
10. Israel/Palestine
11. Afro Jews
12. Outro
Acknowledgments
Interviewees
Bibliography
Index
About the Authors
2. Finding Our Affinities: An Overview of "Blacks and Jews" Dialogue by Jacques Berlinerblau
3. Liberalism: A Tragic Encounter between Blacks and (White) Jews by Terrence Johnson
4. Teaching Blacks and Jews in 2020
5. Interview with Professor Heschel
6. Interview with Professor Chireau
7. Talking to American Jews about Whiteness
8. The Loop and Minister Farrakhan
9. Secularism and Mr. Kicks
10. Israel/Palestine
11. Afro Jews
12. Outro
Acknowledgments
Interviewees
Bibliography
Index
About the Authors