1/31/2022 - Antisemitism pt. 2

 "Choosing to be a Jew means that you become vulnerable to a form of bigotry to which you were previously immune--" -Choosing a Jewish Life, Anita Diamant

There have been instances of discrimination and microaggressions regarding my gender and sexuality. But race, gender, and sexuality are not things of choice, it is who we are. At no point in history has anyone been presented the option of choosing their race, biological gender, or sexuality. That's where religious bigotry gets interesting because it is a form of hatred based on personal convictions and beliefs.

I previously wrote of encounter I had with a manager at work who questioned the authenticity of my Jewish identity based off of my last name. A few months later the same manager made snide remarks when I politely declined food because it had pork. I would consider those encounters as microaggressions. The same manager has unfortunately made similar comments about women of color.

When I try to make sense of the origin or cause of her Jewish microaggressions, I couldn't. What did she gain by questioning my beliefs and scrutinizing my diet? When she made those comments, I ended the conversation with a nod and walked away. However, her actions, regarding both Judaism and race, did not go unheard. I could've chosen to escalate it to the ethics department but I have a wonderful boss who commits himself to justice. So when I told him, I knew it would be addressed. She has yet to find out she will not get the promotion she has been working toward.

But not everyone is lucky enough to have someone to stand by your side in situations like those.

Before I proceed, it might help to explain the layout of my working environment first. Working at Amazon is interesting because you find yourself working in the most odd places. For now, I am required to sit a specific store that is customer facing in a café where employees can easily speak to me for HR things. I claim a table tucked in a corner next to one of three outlets in the entire café, so I tend to get to work much earlier than expected just so I can secure an outlet. If I'm not talking to employees, I am in meetings or working on a project. Because of the many hours I spend there, it has become pleasantly normal for me to chat with regulars at that café. There's a kind middle-aged man who drinks more coffee than I do and always offers to buy me a cup, a custodian who always jokes at how much we both work, a younger guy who always asks what video game I've been playing and offers recommendations, etc. It makes the café feel less foreign and is often a breath of fresh air when work gets complicated.

So it was not abnormal that after I clocked out, packed my laptop away, put on my coat, and started walking toward the staircase that two guys around my age waved me over to their table. They had come almost everyday that week so it was not my first time seeing them but it was my first time talking to them. They introduced themselves and asked how I was to which I responded, and then one of them asked, "Do you know who I am?" caught off guard I replied, "Do I want to know?" He chuckled and said he was a pastor a local church. I nodded, not sure where he was going with this, and he immediately jumped into a long winded...thing, I don't even know what to call it.

He explained that the other pastor of their church passed away as a reaction to the Covid vaccine. He went on to say that the vaccine was a hoax and that if that pastor had truly embraced and trusted Jesus Christ instead of getting the vaccine, he would still be alive. He further explained some nonsensical conspiracy theory that the vaccine was killing people and and how he wanted to ensure that people declare their love and faith for Jesus Christ so they could be saved from Covid. Thankful that my mask was hiding my physical reaction, I said, "Thanks but I'm vaccinated," and turned to walk away when he asked, "Do you accept Jesus Christ?" and said no, I'm Jewish. He said it didn't matter because everyone was subject to Christianity whether they believed it or not. He asked me again if I accepted Jesus Christ as my lord and savior, I said no and started walking away when they shouted, "All Jews go to hell, all Jews will burn in hell!" Baffled, I kept walking.

I was perplexed by the interaction and couldn't process what had happened. I mean, there were multiple things wrong with everything they were saying by their final remark was very direct and was not said with hesitation.

It was awkward to once again talk to my boss about an incident that arose because I mentioned Judaism, but he was understanding. I was obligated to tell him because it technically happened on-site even though I was off the clock.

We live in such a diverse and heavily-populated area and it makes me worried to think that if comments like that were spoken without hesitation here, then what is it like in more remote and/or homogenous areas? What has it been like for Jews from birth? Have I enabled that behavior in the past by being silent, or by laughing at crude, insensitive jokes when I was younger? Blindness that is caused by ingraining things until it becomes the norm is a sneaky and insidious darkness. Shedding light where we once were voluntarily blind is a complex evolution of behavior that requires the absence of pride and life-long dedication to progress. But how many people are willing to admit they can do better? And how many of those same people are willing to put in the work to change?

As Rabbi Miller said many times in class - What now?