The Ashkenazi Coat of Arms

“Ashkenazim are incredibly talented at three things: living as long as possible (and beyond); suffering as long as necessary (and beyond); and complaining as long as tolerated (and beyond)” — Alex Horn

A note from Alex: 

When we fight against the antisemitic lie of Jews as “white European colonizers”, and seek to emphasize our indigenous roots, Jewish activists and allies often respond by emphasizing Mizrahi/Sephardi Jews — who tend to be darker skinned than Ashkenazim, and who maintained a continuous presence in Israel and the surrounding region for thousands of years. Promotion of Mizrahi pride is absolutely beautiful and essential, especially given the unique challenges that Mizrahim have faced over the years, including instances of discrimination from Ashkenazim.

Yet at the same time, we should not concede the antisemites’ framing of Ashkenazi identity. Ashkenazi Jews are not “white European colonizers”: they are a native people of the Levant, and their “foreign”, non-European nature was inextricably tied to their devastation during the Holocaust. And when it has mattered most, Ashkenazim and Mizrahim have united together to protect the Jewish people as a whole.

Ashkenazim are every bit as indigenous to Israel as Mizrahim, and our unique cultural identity is equally worth celebrating. This piece is my attempt to do that. It plays off the classic Ashkenazi practice of “kvetching”: complaining in great detail, usually for the fun of it.

At the end of the day, all Jews are Jews — but by exploring our own unique sub-identities, we contribute to the unbreakable mosaic of diversity that is our Tribe.