The town I grew up in, Newton, is predominately a Jewish neighborhood. When I was younger I never really noticed this until highschool when one of my friends referred to my neighborhood as "jewton". I was immediately taken back by this. He used the term so causally like it was the real name of the town. Ever since that day I have noticed more and more people using the term as a joke, though I do not think it is funny.
Another incident Greenstone's article made me think of was during a friends birthday. A few girlfriends and I were all pitching in to buy our friend a present for her birthday. However, one of my friends Sarah only gave 10 dollars, where as everyone else gave 25. When I told my friend Alice that Sarah had not given as much as everyone else, she replied "well obviously she's a jew" in the most nonchalant way like it was the most obvious answer ever. I scolded Alice for saying this. Sarah was jewish, but that did not mean she didn't give enough money because she was jewish. Later I talked to Sarah about the birthday gift and asked why she had only given 10 dollars. She told me that it was because she had gotten into trouble with her parents and they wouldn't give her any money, and all she had was 10 dollars. Alice had been wrong. Sarah had given all the money she had, and was not under any circumstances being "cheap". I was ashamed of Alice, I felt like she had wronged her friend.
It is a common stereotype to call a Jewish person "cheap". I think that people are too casual about this stereotype. People seemed to be focused on scolding stereotypes against different races, where as religious stereotypes often are overpassed or deemed not as important. It is unfair to ignore the stereotypes Jewish people face. I know the next time I hear someone say "jewton" or refer to someone being cheap because they are Jewish, I am going to speak out against it. I think it is unfair and that in order to create change, people must start on a small scale by trying to change the way their friends or relatives think of Jewish people.
I can relate to what you posted about Jewish Stereotypes. I went to a very non-diverse high school (and grew up in a similarly homogenous town), and most students in my high school identified as Christians. Our school declared one day to be a day free of classes and they brought in specialists to give a huge talk about the harms of bullying. There was an opportunity for people to go up to the microphone and tell their personal experiences. One girl, who I had known since the second grade, was one of the only Jewish people in my grade. She went up to the microphone and discussed how her friends would often make "cheap Jew" comments to her, in a "joking" fashion. She expressed how hurt she was by this.
ReplyDeleteI knew this girl and her group of friends pretty well. I was shocked and appalled that they would make such comments to her. It bothered me that her friends, of all people, were not more sensitive to the religious and cultural differences present in their friend group.
I believe that if Pruce had witnessed this interaction between friends, she would have spoken out about it. That takes a lot of courage, as I'm not sure I would have had the same courage when I was in high school.
Callie, your response made me think of something I have actually never considered before: how often are girls bullied by other girls? It seems to me like boys generally will not choose to bully a girl unless it's like a group level thing because he would either be made fun of or just looked down at. Wouldn't it be interesting to know whether or nor this same situation would happen more often among boys? I wonder, how would a boy take a "cheap Hew" comment from his friends. Would he just shrug it off?
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your post I began to think about how stereotypes affect whole communities and how we must take a proactive approach to combat negative stereotypes. I was reminded of a particular quote by Pastor Niemoller: “First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for the communists and I did not speak out because I was not a communist. Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me.” We must speak out against injustices not only on a micro level scale individually, but on a macro level scale as a community.
ReplyDeleteOften, stereotypical remarks are thrown about casually without thinking about repercussions. In part, these stereotypical remarks are viewed as humorous. It’s the same with sexist jokes; it’s funny to make sexist jokes because women have “reached equality.” Frequently, these “comical” remarks are said around those we feel comfortable around. I agree with you when you say “… in order to create change, people must start on a small scale by trying to change the way their friends or relatives think…” This is the first step, but not the last.