Stealth Jew
ByBrooklyn has the densest population of Jews anywhere in the world, according to a friend. While this fact may not be entirely accurate (surely tiny Israel must have the densest population of Jews?â€â€ed.) I have no doubt that there are an awful lot of Jews in this borough; which is ironic considering that when I left Leeds in 1995 at the age of 18 it was as much to escape Jews and Judaism as it was to get away from home.
Growing up in a Jewish neighborhood, having a large group of Jewish friends, coming from a community which didâ€â€and still doesâ€â€consider “marrying out†to be a social disability, it was liberating to leave. Admittedly, I jumped from the frying pan into the fire by moving to Novgorod, a small town in Russia where I had to keep my Jewish identity a secret because of deep-seated Russian anti-Semitism. But at least, as Jackie Mason would say, it was not “too Jewish.â€Â
Within a few weeks I went from being sick of suburban British Jewish life to having my ears prick up every time I heard the word yevrey. Jews were clever but cunning. We were better than Georgians, Chechens and people from the “-stans†but still untrustworthy and, in the case of reformist intellectuals like Grigory Yavlinsky, never likely to make it to the head of Russian politics because of the “Jewish†tag.
It was a relief to return to England six months later and begin university in London where I had to neither worry nor care about being a Jew.
But being Jewish in England is not quite as simple as it first seems. Big cities like Leeds, Manchester, London and Glasgow have sizable Jewish populations. Here you are likely to find non-Jews who have Jewish friends, or who go to school or who work in offices with Jewish people. But outside of these areas are towns and villages where many people have rarely if ever met a Jew. To them, a Jew is someone in a black hat and a beard, with dark eyes and a hooked nose, hurrying along the street to pray, not a white, middle class English kid. So it always came as a surprise to some people several months into knowing them when you informed them that you were a Jew. (Sometimes, only occasionally, one sensed it was a little repulsive, “You’re Jew-wish?â€Â)
You’re a stealth Jew. Not conforming to their preconceptions of how a Jew looks or acts, but a Jew nonetheless.
Your persona is suddenly and incontrovertibly tied up in Israel and everything the media (rightly or wrongly) claims it has done. You are an aggressor, a bully, a hypocritical Jew meting out some form of sick violence against Palestinians as though it was revenge for what the Nazis did to your people 60 years before. Your character is also linked to everything your new friend has been led to believe that a Jew will be. In most case we are decent, intelligent, hard-working, successful people. In other cases we are greedy, degenerate, conniving filth.
And here’s where Brooklyn comes in. Because although I could not have asked for a better place to have grown up than north Leeds; although Russia was a magical country with a fantastic people, a beautiful language and a rich culture; although London was exciting and edgy and multi-cultural and cool, I have never felt so at home, so totally unconsciously Jewish, as I do in Brooklyn, surrounded by possibly the densest Jewish population in the world.
Links for Monday:
Chicago Bears player scores a 108-yard touchdown, the longest play in NFL history. Via Macboy
Big Apple Blog Festival
19 Comments
November 14th, 2005 at 11:46 am
I so love that about Brooklyn. Jewish seems the default religion, with a couple of Catholics thrown in for kicks.
But yeah, you’re a total stealth Jew. I would’ve never guessed.
November 14th, 2005 at 3:18 pm
‘greedy, degenerate, conniving filth’.
I knew you were a Joo. You couldn’t hide it from me.
November 14th, 2005 at 3:28 pm
It’s true
There’s few places it’s better to be a Jew than in Brooklyn….
November 14th, 2005 at 3:29 pm
It shouldn’t matter who you are or what you do in Brooklyn.. as long as you’re not trying to blow the place up or steal something.
November 14th, 2005 at 3:37 pm
I feel compelled to reply, but don’t know what to write. As a jew who was born and bred in brooklyn, I feel that, despite the fact that I am also a middle class white kid, a “stealth jew” by all physical requirement, my jewishness is something inherintly part of me, worn on my sleeve. I don’t think I’ve ever known someone for more than a couple of hours without them knowing that I am a jew. I suppose that is because I have a hebrew name. Those that recognize it’s origins feel an instant kinship and those that don’t know it’s origins ask what it means. I say “it’s hebrew- it means ‘good’” they ask “are you isreali?” I say “nope- just a jew from Brooklyn” and that’s it. My entire identity – or at least a huge part of it- revealed in the first 8 seconds of conversation. I don’t have a middle name or even an “english” name. Just Tova. When I was younger, I toyed around with other names: Tammy, Ema, Michelle – occasionally introducing myself that way to strangers at a bar- after all, telling them my name would open myself up to allowing them to “know” me… yet lying about my name seemed so deceptive. Now, as an adult, I am proud to have a jewish name. I don’t know if it has guarded me from hearing anti-semitic sentiments that others may be privy to- If it has, I concider myself lucky. I do know it has created a pathway into friendships and relationships with all different types of people- men, women, gay people, straight people, jews, non-jews, catholics, hare krishnas, that began with an understanding that “this is who I am – take it or leave it”… and most people seem to appreciate that sentiment. Those that don’t, those that would respond months into a friendship with a slightly repulsed “your jew-wish?” are thankfully those that get weeded out early on. Paul- as stealth as you are, you seem totally jewish to me…. maybe I’m biased though, we can totally smell our own….
xoxox, T.
November 14th, 2005 at 4:55 pm
Not being Jewish (but having lots of friends who are!), I’ve always found that amazing about the Jewish culture. There’s so much history just wrapped up in being jewish, that identity with Jewish-ness becomes more pronounced than it probably needs to be. Like a plant leaning towards sunlight, or some such simulacrum. There’s obviously nothing wrong with being jewish (or any religion, for that matter), but Jews are so often viewed in that black and white relief, especially in backwards hamlets like suburban Europe where time is frozen at zero kelvin, where stereotypes are everything and nuance is lost, that just the label “jewish” takes on greater meaning. it’s fascinating. whatever, i’m getting far off topic. (i’m atheist raised catholic, so i was hated/pigeonholed in an entirely different manner…)
Anyway, I just wanted to know if you were the one who put my name in that NY blog thingy…
November 14th, 2005 at 5:00 pm
…unless you live in Bay Ridge, a home of rapidly increasing Arab population. It’s a sad neighborhood joke that the name will soon change to Bay-Rut.
November 14th, 2005 at 5:32 pm
Maybe it’s age/maturity, Pavlik. I felt entirely at home in the Finchley/Golders Green area – maybe due to their suburban nature, rather than anyhting else. Although I’ve been to NYC, my view of Brooklyn is entirely limited to films – what is it like?
November 14th, 2005 at 5:59 pm
Mimi…
Tova, you are indeed one of a kind!
Brendon, I doubt that Europe is any more “backward” in its regard of Jews than certain parts of America. I’m guessing that New York is one of a kind too. (And no, I did not include you in that NY thingy…my guess is that “a guy in New York” picked you up somewhere…)
Tatyana, I kind of like the idea of Bay-rut. Maybe Brooklyn can become a model for the Middle East…
And Lukeski, are you a Jew too? If you are, you’re the stealthiest Jew I ever knew!
November 14th, 2005 at 6:25 pm
I am anything and everyting apart from a CoE Portmuthian, dear boy!
November 14th, 2005 at 6:30 pm
I assume a ‘stealth-Jew’ is from the same root as ‘stealth-moose’ – intriguingly, this concept not only exists in Japanese, but they actually have a word for it: bakku-shan – a girl who appears pretty from behind but not from the front. This has been taken from The Meaning of Tingo.
November 16th, 2005 at 8:26 pm
Remind me to discuss this with you when I see you! Never seemed an issue to me and mine, friends or family. And growing up with a ‘stealth racist’ father from the ww2 generation I can promise that Judaism was never an issue in my life, informal or formal education, whilst growing up. The underlying Brit problem seems always to be more about skin colour and origin. This is, of course, in a nice, middle class way, but I have to say that some of the imagery above seems like an idea that those within the Jewish communnity have succumbed to and not that of those outside the faith. I hate to make sweeping statements to those I can’t face but despite my lack of talent for self-expression, this all seems fussy over the wrong issues. Surely the Jewish population face more pressing arguments from the goyim? Is there any need for the ‘stealth jew’ or is there a greater pressure on the modern Jew to face a battle between avoiding being defined by a heritage and being respectful of the same. Surely amongst my non-Jewish peer group there is a great pressure to deny religion as something anachronistic. As a Jew, it seems to end up in the question of race or religion – surely that makes it harder? But does that make it a failing of those outside the Jewish faith?
November 17th, 2005 at 10:48 pm
British Jews are mainly 20th century immigrants. According to my father, who is of the same generation as yours, this was a much bigger problem for Jews in the good old days when they were more recent arrivals (1930s, 1940s and 1950s). I have heard many horror stories of British schools and the Army/Navy in those days…
I’m afraid you lost me a little bit after that! What are the more pressing arguments from “the goyim” than the ones stated above?
Yes, Jews have their own problems—mainly their dwindling numbers. But in my experience, the majority of young, Jewish people are not torn over choosing between their religion/heritage and being a part of society. Most young Jews want to marry other Jews (or people willing to convert) and raise Jewish families like the ones they were brought up in. Simple as that.
November 19th, 2005 at 3:19 pm
Pavvers, your mentioning attitudes to Jews in Russia reminds me of many a moment there when you were ‘outed’ to mutual friends. Of course they had all the stereotypes built in too, and reacted in a but-he’s-such-a-diamond-geezer sort of way. Ever the optimist, I think of this positively – at least you shattered the stereotypes where they were concerned. They knew you as diamond geezer first, Jew second. A changed their opinion of B. See? You’re a one-man revolution…
November 20th, 2005 at 6:31 pm
I’m going to have to take your word for it Dezik; I’m afraid the vodka and beer has clouded my memory. Didn’t we have a codeword for G and J while we were in Petrozavodsk?
November 20th, 2005 at 10:22 pm
FORTUYN ON THE FRENCH INTIFADA
Yes, he’s been dead for over three years now but when I posted on Hirsi Ali’s intent to produce a sequel to Submission, I started looking for a Fortuyn quote in order to give a bit more depth to the…
November 23rd, 2005 at 8:09 am
Pavvers, I not long ago came across an excellent case of stealth Jewry. Well, not Jewry. A single stealth Jew. So stealth, in fact, he hardly seemed to know himself. I was chatting to a friend’s boyfriend, who’s from Liverpool, who has English name and last name, looks like a regular English bloke, speaks with a Liverpool accent, the works. Eastern Europe came up. “D’you know what Choshchoshoshki means, like?” he asked curiously, struggling to get his teeth round some Slavic surname. “It’s me greatgrandparents on me muther’s siiiiide who came over from Riga. Is that Lithuania?” Latvia, I explained, my interest growing by the second at a Slavic surname from Latvia and turn-of-the-century immigrants to Britain. “Yeah, they were Jewish akhkhkhkhkhkhtually. It goes through the muther’s siiiiiide, Judaism, like, duznit?” So here sat a Jew who, I’m guessing, had cast a thought in the direction of his roots for probably about the 3rd time in 35 years, and for about ten seconds, before we moved back on to talking about cornflakes or something else. I suppose on the plus side, neither he nor his girlfriend thought this was a big deal, him ‘technically’ being a Jew. He was who he was. I don’t think he’d have given a toss either way if he was called Jewish or not. On the downside, of course, as majorly integrated folks with only one side of the family being Jewish, all the traditions and knowledge of Judaism seem to have been lost… But the stealth! The stealth! Those scouser Jews. They’re famous for it. (PS. You were never ‘outed’ in Russia in your presence. We always did that behind your back and without your permission!)
November 23rd, 2005 at 8:14 am
PS. I think G and J were the code words. I don’t think we should go into espionage.
November 23rd, 2005 at 9:10 am