I’ve been thinking a lot about my 1st experience with anti-semitism. I was 12 and trying to fit in w/a new group of girls. THE girls. We were allowed to go to an outdoor concert alone - it was a big deal. (Thread)

A group of boys started talking to us. Older and cute. Pretty awesome for 12 yr old girls. At one point, one of the boys asked, “are any of you Jewish?”

My family was reformed. We had never talked about anti-semitism - I had never felt it - but this felt scary. I stayed quiet, the girls giggled and one pointed to me and said, “she is.”

The rest of the show we all sat together as the boys called me a Kyke (had to ask my mom later what it meant) & a Jew & my friends laughed & flirted. I couldn’t go because I knew I’d get in trouble if I left the group at a large outdoor venue, so I stayed. And took it for hours

To this day, I couldn’t tell you what any of the boys looked like - but you better believe I can name every one of the girls. Not because they were necessarily anti-Semitic, but because they did nothing.

That changed me - as a Jew, because I became scared to tell anyone I was Jewish for a very long time, AND as an ally - because I vowed to never sit and do/say nothing if someone else needed a voice.

It continues to crush me when we don’t defend each other... lift each other and make it better for each other. We know who the bullies/bigots are. I pray that we continue asking who WE are as they continue to try to tear us apart - and we help them do it. (End)