TORONTO — When Inna Uretzki was a student at York University, Hillel was never a safe space for her.
After feeling out of place at school, Inna Uretzki, left, and her sister, Suzy, created Jewski, a Russian Jewish campus group.
It was, in Uretzki’s eyes, a place for Canadian Jews.
“[Canadian Jews] are brought up together, they go to the same shul. There’s not a lot of acceptance for outsiders,” said Uretzki, 24, a Russian Jew. “I felt it. [Canadian Jews] will only let you get close so far.”
Uretzki, along with her 20-year-old sister, Suzy, worked with Hillel to change this. The sisters started Jewski, a Toronto campus group aimed at Russian Jews aged about 18 to 26.
The new initiative, which was developed last summer, came out of I’m a Jew.ru, a social group for Russian Jews in the GTA that the sisters helped start about two years ago.
While it was originally aimed at 18- to 26-year-olds, the group began to attract an older demographic.
“There were a few internal issues. We wanted to focus on a different age group,” said the older Uretzki.
Her sister agreed.
“There’s a lot of difference in terms of interests between the two age groups,” she said. “Older [participants] are interested in more cultural events. We don’t limit it just to culture. We want to involve students.”
This led the sisters to leave Jew.ru and work closely with Hillel to focus on campus life.
“When I started this off, I talked to a lot of people… We [as Russian Jewish students] have different needs,” said the younger Uretzki, adding that Jewski has opened her eyes to new experiences.
“You notice so many different people and stories you weren’t aware of,” she said.
The main difference that separates Jewski from other Hillel initiatives is the way in which Judaism is viewed by most Russian Jews, the sisters said.
“We were brought up with Judaism being a culture rather than a religion,” Suzy said.
Her sister agreed.
“A lot of [Russian] people don’t practise [Judaism], a lot of people don’t know the rules,” Uretzki said. “I’m not religious at all, but seeing the lighting of the Shabbat candles, [it’s] a beautiful tradition.”
For the sisters, the tradition is spiritual, but not necessarily religious.
This is reflected in many of Jewski’s events. While the group has Shabbat dinners and recently organized a Chanukah party, they were careful not to impose.
“We recognize that there are a bunch of people who are [religious]. We do as much as we can,” Uretzki said. “We’re primarily a social group. People are not necessarily going to go for something religious.”
The sisters first began working with the Russian Jewish community after attending a Shabbaton in Chicago about two years ago, where they were exposed to the city’s Russian Jewish population.
For Suzy, it was a “bull’s-eye” moment.
“I finally understood what being a Russian Jew was,” she said. “I wanted to give some people the opportunity to have that aha moment.”
Alona Geysman, Hillel’s Russian Jewish programming administrator at York, is working with both Uretzkis to meet this goal.
As a Russian Jew, Geysman understands the importance of Jewski.
“When I was on campus, I wasn’t necessarily attracted by something that was too Jewish. I thought the Thornhill crowd would be there – people with Canadian Jewish backgrounds,” she said. “I feel like the Russian Jewish students should be able to go to Hillel and Jewski is a way to pull them in.”
For Alex Goldstein, 23, a recent York University graduate who immigrated to Canada from Ukraine in 2000, the group is filling an important need.
“It’s really something good for Russian Jews to have,” he said, adding that he attended both Jew.ru and Jewski events.
“It hits the spot. We are unique in our experiences. We need something that represents us specifically. We’re not a small group to ignore or disregard. We can’t be merged with other Jews.”
