Kesher Talk

Classifying yourself ain't easy: When you're a Jew, how do you classify yourself on a race/ethnicity questionnaire? Rachel Kadish (Moment, Jun./Jul. 2002) writes that

Like so many Americans, I have more than one answer to the question of race or ethnicity. And like many, I struggle to find the single answer that feels adequate. In doing so, I am not trying to take advantage of the Affirmative Action system or use these forms to make myself sound exotic (I have never used my mother's Mexican birth to pass myself off as Hispanic, though I probably could). I am only trying to get it right. Does Jewish count as an ethnicity? Does Holocaust-survivor-family-scattered-around-the-world-from-Australia-to-Israel-to-England-to-the-United States count?

... Filling out census forms in the 21st century, we tip our hats to an ages-old imponderable: Is Judaism a religion, or an ethnicity?"

... Who—according to our employers, the U.S. census authorities, and ourselves—are we?

This time, I find my answer at the supermarket. The "ethnic" food aisle in my local grocery showcases matzah balls; Jewish foods line the shelves beside rows of Italian, Spanish, and Greek products. Nowhere is there a "Catholic" or "Protestant" food shelf. There you have it: I know I have an ethnicity because Shoprite tells me so.

Back at home, under "Other (specify)" I pen, in decisive block letters, "Jewish/Eastern European."

Then, hedging my bets, I check "White, not of Hispanic Origin"—which is, of course, the truth—and hope that my prospective employer will not file my application under:

"Perplexed."

posted by Howard @ 5/15/2002 09:58:16 AM