Madelaine Lucy Hanson
1 min readFeb 26, 2022

--

Believe me, they do and are persecuted. “Passing privilege” works in some contexts, and yes, that alienates itself as an ethnic experience as to say, experiencing blackness in the west. If you are prepared to get a nose job, straighten your hair and avoid the sun, yes, you are “white”. But kids growing up with jewfros, darker skin, or large noses are consistently targeted by bullies and taunted with holocaust and oven jokes. If you’re seen as Jewish at work as an adult, people assume you’re wealthy or somehow connected to wealth, or your successes are colored by your secret connections. This is near constant. Many Jews do choose to blend in and actively fear being identified as Jewish in public: go to any synagogue and you’ll see armed guards or security arrangements. It’s not as simple as a race/a religion. It’s a bit like being Italian or Greek: you aren’t “white” but you aren’t “not white” and there are accompanying tropes and traits that come with it. Is this to say white American-Jewish folks have racist experiences that are the same or even close to African or Asian folks? No. But the Jewish experience is still one overwhelmingly seeped in prejudice and stereotypes. Not all gentiles are antisemitic, but all Jews experience antisemitism.

--

--

Madelaine Lucy Hanson
Madelaine Lucy Hanson

Written by Madelaine Lucy Hanson

The girl who still knows everything. Opinions entirely my own. Usually. Enquiries: madelaine@madelainehanson.co.uk

Responses (3)