Culturally, I used to be tzemisht- which is one way in Yiddish to say confused. Born in this country, but English wasn’t my first, or even my second, language.
My family was confident that I would learn to speak it the old-fashioned way, by watching Sesame Street and General Hospital… And by going to “programs in the Y.” In my childhood neighborhood, the center of Jewish life was the Boro Park Y. By high school I had gotten certified as a lifeguard and my first referral was to the Bensonhurst J.
And when I went anywhere, I looked for a Y OR a J. And while I no longer felt tzemisht as in confused- I became an alternate definition for tzemisht, COMBINED.
So, why is combining communities to exponentially grow our platform as global citizens necessary in making a difference?
And that’s what we are going to tackle today…
I sit down with Adam Chaskin, CEO of the Jewish Community Alliance and Eric Mann, CEO and President of the First Coast YMCA as they share their personal journeys, revealing how their paths led them to these significant roles. They also talk about why they work relentlessly to build communities and provide life-enhancing opportunities like Together Against Hate: Promoting Unity in Our Community- an initiative designed to actively educate and inspire our neighbors to build a more inclusive Northeast Florida.
Together Against Hate: Promoting Unity in Our Community is a speaker series that will address topics impacting our area including prejudices in faith, race, antisemitism, ethnicity, LGBTQ+, gender, and diverse abilities. Starting in September, influential speakers from 904Ward, JASMYN, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), The Arc Jacksonville, The LJD Jewish Family & Community Services, OneJax, and Interfaith Center, will empower the community with the knowledge needed to have a voice in taking a stance against bias.
As a visual representation of this partnership and the efforts made to unify the community, the series will culminate with the first-ever Racing Against Hate 5K Run/Walk at the Winston Family YMCA on Sunday, February 25, 2024, at 1 pm.
Click here to learn more about the Together Against Hate speaker series and the first-ever Racing Against Hate 5K Run/Walk in February 2024.
The educational speaker series begins on Thursday, September 14 and continues through January 2024.
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