Isolated and excluded: New survey highlights challenges of global LGBTQ+ Jews of Color
Survey of 90 Jews in 20 states and four international locations conducted by US nonprofit Keshet finds most communities have a lot of work to do to make gay Jews of Color feel included
Zev Stub is the Times of Israel's Diaspora Affairs correspondent.
A new report shedding light on the experiences of LGBTQ+ Jews of Color has put the spotlight on a subsection of American and world Jewry that often prefers to avoid attention.
The publication last month of the “Threads of Identity” report by Keshet, a nonprofit supporting LGBTQ+ Jews, is believed to be the first comprehensive survey of experiences of LGBTQ+ Jews of Color and paints a picture of misunderstanding and isolation within a small but growing Jewish minority within a minority. The survey was funded by the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Jewish United Fund, JPride and others.
The survey included over 90 respondents in 20 states and four international locations, with one-third hailing from California or New York. Some 55% identified as Black or African American, followed by Latino/Hispanic (31%) and Asian (17%). About 36% of the respondents identified as “mixed race or multi-racial.”
The Times of Israel spoke with four proud Jews of Color who described the importance of being part of an accepting Jewish community while navigating delicate balancing acts in the face of racism and homophobia.
“Imagine you are entering a new space to be with a community, knowing that everyone is going to question you and your identity,” said Josh Maxey, executive director of the LGBTQ+ Bet Mishpachah Synagogue in Washington, DC.
“People who don’t even know me will ask me to open up about very personal details about my conversion or my spouse. Synagogue members have assumed I’m on the custodial staff and asked me to take out the trash. Even when people try to be welcoming, there is often a clear message that I don’t belong,” said Maxey.
According to the report, some 89 percent of LGBTQ+ Jews of Color said they encounter microaggressions or stigmatizing perceptions in Jewish spaces, and 83% said their identities harm their sense of belonging in the Jewish community. About 88% reported a lack of representation and understanding in their community, and 77% said they feel burdened by the need to explain themselves.
Nearly all the respondents identify with pluralistic streams of Judaism, with 33% identifying as Reform, 26% as Conservative, 17% as Reconstructionist, and 18% as “just Jewish.” Specific challenges related to more traditional Orthodox communities were not directly addressed.
The report called on Jewish communities to work to provide support and allyship for LGBTQ+ Jews of Color. It emphasizes the importance of fostering inclusivity and respecting dignity to ensure that community members feel seen, valued, and supported.
Counting the tribe
The term Jews of Color is believed to have been introduced in 2001 by diversity researcher Shahanna McKinney-Baldon in the Jewish feminist journal Bridges. A number of organizations now exist to support the JoC community, including the Jews of Color Initiative, Be’chol Lashon, the Ammud Torah Academy, and Kamochah for Black Orthodox Jews.
Who counts as a JoC is a matter of debate, with many advocates saying that the term applies to 12-15% of the Jewish population and encompasses all non-White Jews, including some of Hispanic and Mizrachi origin. The editors of the authoritative American Jewish Year Book, Ira Sheskin and Arnold Dashefsky, challenge this calculation and place the number closer to 8%.
A Pew Research Center study in 2020 found that 92% of the United States’ 7.5 million Jews identified as White. Of the remainder, 4% identify as Hispanic, 1% as black, and less than 1% each self-identified as Asian, American Indian, or other demographics.
The self-identified demographic categories are shifting quickly. Only 85% of Jewish adults under age 30 identify as White, while 15% identify with other categories, including 7% Hispanic and 2% Black, the report found. In contrast, 97% of Jews aged 50 or older identify as White.
Analyzing the numbers further, studies of sexual orientation in the US find that between 5.5% and 9.3% of US adults identify as LGBTQ+, a trend that continues to rise as non-heterosexual relationships become more socially accepted.
Doing the math, this would indicate that there are somewhere between 33,000 and 56,000 LGBTQ+ Jews of Color in the US, a small but not negligible slice of the Jewish American experience that is rarely addressed publicly.
“This report is something I never could have imagined in my lifetime,” said Conscious Builders Founder Gamal Palmer. “Growing up as a Black, bi-racial, gay (and out), male Jew, we lacked the language and the organized community to foster support, solidarity, and growth among LGBTQ+ Jews.”
To understand the challenges of being a minority-inside-a-minority-inside-a-minority, Keshet put The Times of Israel in touch with four LGBTQ+ Jews of Color. The following first-person accounts are edited for brevity.
Michael Davis (45)
Project Shema: Jewish educator & diversity training facilitator
I grew up in a progressive Protestant Black family. My parents were always supportive. When I came out as gay, they were fine with it. When I said I wanted to be an actor and move to New York, they encouraged me. And when I fell in love with Jewish spirituality and decided to convert, they accepted that, too.
Before I converted, I had learned about the challenges I would face as a Black man in the Jewish world, but I was studying in a progressive community that embraced me with open arms even as I came to my Intro to Judaism class with a mohawk and nail polish. When things felt difficult, they provided a home for me. I don’t think I could have completed that journey without them.
Now, though, I have less patience for people judging me. Recently, I tried to enter a synagogue for high holiday services with my ticket, and was subjected to a lot of questions before they let me in. I understand that there are real security issues in the Jewish world now, and I accept that this is my reality as a Black man, but people need to understand that the way you speak with someone in a vulnerable position is very important.
Kiyomi Kowalski (46)
Jewbian Princess: Inclusion activist
I am an Afro-Latin queer Jewish Marine Corps veteran mother working to build large doorways so people can bring their full selves into any space without leaving any part of their identity behind. That means ensuring that my children and I can feel fully welcomed in any Jewish setting. To do this, I co-founded Jewbian Princess, an organization led by Black Jewish women focused on inclusion within the Jewish community.
Unlike many Jews who are White, I often experience antisemitism in Jewish spaces. My identity is constantly questioned. I’m often asked, “When did you convert?” as if it’s impossible for me to have been born Jewish. We like to think we are diverse, but many Jews really believe that all Jews must be white. Often, I’ll be sitting next to a white convert, and I’ll be the one having my identity questioned.
Creating real relationships requires difficult conversations, not just surface-level solidarity. If we want true inclusion, we have to ask tough questions, challenge assumptions, and build relationships that acknowledge our full, complex identities.
Ziggy Valdez (26)
Tzedek America: Jewish educator
I grew up in a military family with a mix of Mexican, Jewish, and white heritage, but I was very connected to my Jewish identity. I went to religious school, attended Jewish summer camps, and felt deeply connected to my faith. However, being a Jew of color in predominantly white Jewish spaces wasn’t easy. There were wealth disparities between me and my peers, and I often had to answer questions about how I was Jewish.
Throughout my life, I’ve encountered ignorance and discrimination. As a kid, other Latinx children told me I couldn’t be both Mexican and Jewish. In Jewish spaces, I’ve been questioned about my identity, and I was told not to share that I was gay while working at a synagogue, even as I study to become a rabbi.
There was a time when I was thinking about doing an Orthodox conversion so that my Judaism would be recognized by everyone. But I realized, ‘Why do I need to go through this whole thing to prove that I am what I have been my whole life, a practicing Jew?’ I’ve spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to be as Jewish as I feel comfortable being while also being true to myself.
Josh Maxey (32)
Bet Mishpachah Synagogue: Executive director
I was raised in a Christian family, which was difficult as a Black gay man, and I was struggling with issues of religion and faith. A visit to a synagogue in New York, where I felt a deep sense of belonging, started me on a journey where I converted and became involved in Jewish leadership, including serving on the board of several organizations.
But there are many moments that make me feel like an outsider in the very spaces that are supposed to be a spiritual home. People ask personal, invasive questions—like whether I converted for marriage, or when they’ll get to meet my wife, even though I’m gay. Usually, people don’t mean harm, but it’s exhausting to constantly have to prove that I belong. People should assume that if someone is in a Jewish space, they’re there for a reason, and that should be enough.
I want people to know that it’s okay to be curious, but you need to get to know someone first before you start asking invasive questions about deeply personal experiences. Inclusion isn’t just about being polite—it’s about creating spaces where people don’t feel like outsiders. When I come into the synagogue, I just want to be myself and pray.
