STORRS, CT — Antisemitism relies on distorted assumptions about Jewish identity, says Lewis Gordon, Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Global Affairs at UConn.
As he explained ahead of a major university-hosted conference this week, “In the U.S. context, people just presume Jews as white, for instance, and Jews are a diverse population.”
Gordon, who is Black and Jewish, points to that erasure as a source of both confusion and hate.
“For some people, it’s easier for them to hate us if they imagine we’re white, and for some people, it’s easier to hate us if they imagine we’re not white,” he said. “You lose either way.”
He argues that real change begins with open, honest dialogue across communities.
“There are antisemitism and anti-Black racism, but that’s not all we’re about,” he said. “We’re also about our humanity.”
That discussion is now underway at UConn, where Gordon and co-convener Adane Zawdu Gebyanesh ’19 Ph.D. are leading a two-day conference at the Dodd Center for Human Rights.
More than a dozen Black and Jewish scholars from around the globe are participating, tackling topics like global antisemitism, genocide in sub-Saharan Africa, and Ethiopian feminism in Israel.
The gathering began informally with conversations on April 28, including a lunch with UConn Hillel where diverse Jewish voices debated productively.
“It was such a moving, rich, nakedly raw, truthful conversation,” said Gordon.
The event, livestreamed and open to the public, continues through April 30. Gordon hopes younger scholars will emerge with momentum.
“My hope for the younger generation… is for the older generation to become a supporting cast rather than functioning as the gatekeepers.”
