The dilemma of the Yiddishist curmudgeon, fighting the essentializing of Yiddish at every turn: on the one hand, spend a disproportionate amount of time trying to explain why Yiddish is *not* inherently a language of anti-racist radicals and revolutionaries-

and the rest of the time having to explicate and wrestle with the inherent xenophobia/racism of Yiddish language and culture. All the while trying to make people understand the profound differences between European and American culture....

Which is all hella weird cuz I sought out Yiddish as a teenager becauseI was disgusted by the superficiality of American Jewish life and the conservative, materialistic emptiness of the suburbs. I went hunting for the radicals and revolutionaries, the fiery heroes I could own

But, and here’s the thing I can’t stop shouting: if you actually go ahead and start to learn Yiddish, start to grapple with the gloriously rich depths of it all, you immediately realize the impossibility of reducing it to your own particular POV.

Yiddish culture was and is full of the things liberal, modern people are supposed to despise: sexism, xenophobia, racism... it’s absolutely possible to come to terms with those things, to love Yiddish culture for what it is without endorsing the things we (rightly) condemn. But!

You have to be ok with embracing an illiberal tradition, have to be honest about what your values are and when they come from. I can accept the illiberalities of Yiddish (and also get into transformative rumbles with them!) and still be present in my modern values cuz-