Faces of American Jewry

The American Jewish community is a beautiful tapestry made up of individuals from many diverse backgrounds and with many ways of being Jewish. There’s no one American Jewish experience, and each unique perspective only adds to the richness of the Jewish story in America. American Jewish Committee (AJC) highlights stories of American Jews in this video series. Watch the videos here.

Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Erica Mindel
In this video, Erica Mindel, Assistant Director of Program Development at AJC Project Interchange, shares her experience as a progressive Zionist American Jew, from engaging in dialogue about the Israel-Palestinian conflict on her college campus to serving in the Israel Defense Forces.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Ava Rigelhaupt
In this video, Ava Rigelhaupt shares her experience as a Jewish Chinese neurodiverse adoptee and her pride and joy in being a part of the resilient international Jewish community that harmonizes diverse traditions, songs, and foods.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Leslie Ginsparg Klein
In this video, Leslie Ginsparg Klein shares her experience as an Orthodox Jewish woman, and how that led her to embrace and create spaces for Jewish women, from writing a book about Bais Yaakov schools for Orthodox girls to creating a forum for Jewish women to sing and perform together.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Narda Alcorn
In this video, Narda Alcorn shares her experience as a Black queer Jewish woman, challenging what it means to be Jewish while raising her children to be proud Jews.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Arun Viswanath
In this video, Arun Viswanath shares his experience growing up in a home speaking Yiddish and Tamil and learning to appreciate his multicultural upbringing and how that connects him to the global Jewish community.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Lenny Krayzelburg
In this video, four-time Olympic gold medalist Lenny Krayzelburg shares his experience growing up in the Soviet Union, finding his Jewish identity after immigrating to the United States, competing in the Olympics, and participating in the Maccabiah Games during the Second Intifada.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Toby Levy
In this video, Toby Levy shares how her experience growing up in Nazi-occupied Poland shaped her passion as a Zionist, her love of America, and her commitment to ensuring that Jewish history and the Holocaust are taught to young Jews.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Zach Cooper
In this video, Zach Cooper shares how his experience serving in the U.S. Army deepened his relationship to his Jewish identity and desire to pass along those values to his child.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Dr. Saba Soomekh
In this video, Dr. Saba Soomekh, Associate Director of AJC Los Angeles, shares her experience growing up as a first-generation Persian American and how her identity as a Persian Jew has shaped her life, from family Shabbat dinners to a career as a professor of religious studies and an advocate for global Jewry and against antisemitism.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Bobby Lapin
The American Jewish community is a beautiful tapestry made up of individuals from many diverse backgrounds and with many ways of being Jewish. There’s no one American Jewish experience, and each unique perspective only adds to the richness of the Jewish story in America. Bobby Lapin, Chair of AJC's Contemporary Jewish Life, shares his American Jewish experience.
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Faces of American Jewry
Faces of American Jewry: Jeannette Kaplun
The American Jewish community is a beautiful tapestry made up of individuals from many diverse backgrounds and with many ways of being Jewish. There’s no one American Jewish experience, and each unique perspective only adds to the richness of the Jewish story in America. Jeannette Kaplun discusses her Latina American Jewish identity and her American Jewish experience.
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AJC Virtual Global Forum 2021 | June 6 - 9