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You can be called a Bad Jew—by the community or even yourself—if you don't keep kosher, don't send your children to Hebrew school, or enjoy Christmas music; if your partner isn't Jewish, or you don't call your mother enough. But today, amid fears of rising antisemitism, what makes a Good or Bad Jew is a particularly fraught question.
There is no answer, argues Emily Tamkin. Several million now identify as American Jews; but they don't all identify with one another. American Jewish history, like all Jewish history, has been about transformation—and full of discussions, debates and hand-wringing over who is Jewish, how to be Jewish, and what it means to be Jewish.
Bad Jews is a rich, absorbing reflection on 100 years of American Jewish identities and arguments. Tamkin's fascinating, diverse interviews explore the complex story of American Jewishness, and its evolving, conflicting positions, from assimilation, race, and social justice; to politics, Zionism, and Israel. She pinpoints the one truth about Jewish identity: It's always changing.
You can be called a Bad Jew—by the community or even yourself—if you don't keep kosher, don't send your children to Hebrew school, or enjoy Christmas music; if your partner isn't Jewish, or you don't call your mother enough. But today, amid fears of rising antisemitism, what makes a Good or Bad Jew is a particularly fraught question.
There is no answer, argues Emily Tamkin. Several million now identify as American Jews; but they don't all identify with one another. American Jewish history, like all Jewish history, has been about transformation—and full of discussions, debates and hand-wringing over who is Jewish, how to be Jewish, and what it means to be Jewish.
Bad Jews is a rich, absorbing reflection on 100 years of American Jewish identities and arguments. Tamkin's fascinating, diverse interviews explore the complex story of American Jewishness, and its evolving, conflicting positions, from assimilation, race, and social justice; to politics, Zionism, and Israel. She pinpoints the one truth about Jewish identity: It's always changing.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Reviews-
Starred review from August 15, 2022 Journalist Tamkin (The Influence of Soros) illuminates in this vibrant study the multifaceted nature of the Jewish experience in America. Interweaving historical vignettes, contemporary interviews, and personal reflections, Tamkin argues that “as a monolithic or hegemonic entity... the Jewish community does not exist.” She examines how restrictions placed on Jewish immigration in the 1920s intensified “assimilation and acculturation,” as well as tensions over “what it meant to be an American Jew,” and notes that while some Jews became deeply involved in socialist politics, others founded the neoconservative movement. She also delves into the boom in suburban synagogue construction after WWII, the creation of the “Jewish American Princess” stereotype, and the collaboration between conservative Jews and the Christian right. Throughout, Tamkin brings nuanced perspective to such controversial matters as the alleged antisemitism of Muslim congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib and the “active role” some American Jews “play in upholding America’s racist, slave-based society” (she notes that the first Jewish person to hold a cabinet position in North America was Confederate attorney general and secretary of state Judah P. Benjamin). Heartfelt, nuanced, and empathetic, this revelatory ethnography is a must-read.
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