Loolwa Khazzoom has been advocating for the acknowledgement of Jewish multiculturalism since the 1990s. It’s what led her to start the Jewish Multicultural Project, which works with Jewish institutions to provide resources for raising awareness about diverse Jews, as well as numerous other organizations that spotlight Jews from the Middle East and North Africa.

Despite all her years doing this work, she still encounters confusion, resistance and even denial that Jewish diversity is an issue. And when community leaders decide to do the work, they feel they have to construct artificial bridges to connect Azhkenazim with Jews of colour—instead of simply asking the diverse members of their own community.

In this wide-ranging interview, Khazzoom dives into her history of Jewish multicultural activism, as well as her experiences with self-healing, Iraqi Jewish music and educating people about what a diverse global Jewish community really looks like.

Learn more about her work, including her books, albums and articles, at khazzoom.com.

Credits

Rivkush is hosted by Rivka Campbell. Michael Fraiman is the editor and prodcer. Our theme music is by Westside Gravy. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.