Funny – You Don’t Look Jewish!

CU Boulder’s Program in Jewish Studies and Jews of Color: Histories and Futures is excited to welcome Dr. Helen Kim of Whitman College to join us for a conversation about Asian American Jewish experience. Her talk will explore the intersections of race, religion, and Jewish identity in the context of  mixed-race families in contemporary U.S. society.  Dr. Kim will discuss the research she conducted with her partner, Noah Leavitt, for their book, “JewAsian: Race, Religion, and Identity for America’s Newest Jews“ (University of Nebraska Press, 2016).  Roughly ten years after conducting research for this book, Dr. Kim will provide some reflections and discuss some connections between her work, the current racial and ethnic landscape in the U.S., changes in American Jewish demography, and the vibrant work currently being conducted on Jews of Color in the United States.

Helen Kim is Professor of Sociology and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. Her scholarship focuses on race and American Judaism in the contemporary era. Along with co-author, Noah Leavitt, she published JewAsian: Race, Religion, and Identity for America’s Newest Jews in 2016 with University of Nebraska Press. Her scholarship has been profiled in various popular news outlets including the New York Times, NPR, and Huffington Post.

This event is supported by a grant from the Henry Luce Foundation and is part of Jews of Color: Histories and Futures, a three-year initiative to explore the diverse traditions and experiences of Jews of Color in the United States in light of the complicated relationship that American Jewish communities have to white Christian supremacy and white privilege.