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Antisemitism & Teen Wellbeing
February 15, 2023 @ 8:00 pm – 9:15 pm EST
Raising Up Teens with Moving Traditions – a webinar for parents and educators
Antisemitism – its rise in prevalence and heightened anxiety around how it impacts the Jewish community – is keeping many of us up at night. When it comes to how it affects our teens, we may not know what to do or say, or even how to start the conversation. Join Moving Traditions for an opportunity to look at antisemitism through the lens of supporting teens in the ways they need it most: personal wellbeing (shleimut), caring relationships (hesed), and a Jewish and feminist vision of equity and justice (tzedek).
Through these lenses, we will explore questions like:
- How do I help teens identify antisemitism in the various spaces and relationships that are relevant to their day-to-day lives? What resources do teens need in order to do this?
- How can I help teens stand up for themselves when they experience antisemitism and how can I help them stand up for others?
- How does antisemitism affect my teen’s Jewish identity?
- How do I support them in asking for allyship and support from others, and what makes this complicated for them? How do I support them in continuing to be an ally on the other important issues they care about?
- When I hear about antisemitism happening at my child’s school, what is my responsibility as a parent?
- How do the various identities I hold, as well as the identities of others that I interact with, impact how I experience antisemitism, and how do I respond when I experience or witness it?
- How do I help my teen cultivate a joyful and meaningful connection with Judaism at a time of increasing antisemitism?
Join us for a conversation with a panel of experts representing different approaches to these questions and our teens’ needs when faced with antisemitism. We will also share resources and conversation starters to help feel better prepared to approach conversations with the teens in your life in ways that are supportive and useful for them.
Featured Speakers
Rabbi Diana Fersko (she/her/hers) is the Senior Rabbi of The Village Temple in Manhattan. Her work has been featured widely in the press including Tablet Magazine, The Jerusalem Post, and The New Yorker. After preaching and teaching about antisemitism for over a decade, Rabbi Fersko’s first book, We Need to Talk about Antisemitism, an accessible guide to fighting and understanding antisemitism, will be published by Seal Press/Hachette.
As a part of this event, Moving Traditions will be giving away five free copies of We Need to Talk About Antisemitism. Register now!
Oren Jacobson (he/him/his) is a civic entrepreneur, thought leader, and policy advisor focused on helping communities and organizations build the strength and capacity necessary to improve people’s lives. In the spirit of deepening understanding, Oren launched Project Shema, an independent nonprofit organization that trains and supports the Jewish community and allies to understand and address modern antisemitism, with an emphasis on how anti-Jewish ideas can emerge in progressive spaces and in discourse around Israel and Palestine. Through this work, he has advised global Jewish institutions and served as a subject matter expert on antisemitism to global corporations.
Jennifer Anolik (she/her/hers) is Moving Traditions’ Fellowship Director for Kol Koleinu , a year-long fellowship that gives teens across the country the skills to take part in Jewish, feminist social-changemaking. Jen believes that the leading way to create a better future is to invest in our young people. Jen is a published poet and third generation Holocaust survivor who serves on the board of 3GPhilly, a collection of grandchildren of Holocaust survivors seeking to honor their grandparents through education, advocacy, and peer support to uphold the pledge of “never again.”
Beckee Birger (she/her/hers) is Moving Traditions’ Director of Kumi: An Anti Oppression Teen Leadership Experience. Beckee’s passion for social justice has led her through a variety of jobs, such as special education attorney, AmeriCorp program manager, and career advisor at an education non-profit. She believes engaging people of all ages, but especially youth, in political education and community organizing is critical to our future, and she’s proud to celebrate her Judaism through a deep commitment to social change.
Raising Up Jewish Teens with Moving Traditions is a series of free webinars geared toward parents, educators, and all those who guide Jewish preteens and teens. All are welcome.