Posted to Communal Matters on

Four Black Girls on Quest to Understand Lubavitchers

Selena Brown, Chantell Clarke, Sabrina Smith and Tangeneka Taylor.

Four teenage girls, all new immigrants from the Caribbean, arrive at a high school in the heart of what was the epicenter of the Crown Heights riots 20 years ago. As newcomers they know nothing of the long history of tension between the Black and Lubavitch Jewish communities in the neighborhood. They set out to try to educate themselves about a culture so different from their own, in the midst of stereotypes and misinformation about Jewish people.

Related Articles

39 Comments

  • ST2351

    quite well done, intelligent, fair, open to the challenge of presenting truth and understanding.
    I just don’t understand why the chabad girls said “we can’t eat your food and we can’t marry you”. why not explain why we are the way we are….and maybe have said “we must marry our own kind because that is according to our Torah, and we must eat our own specific foods for the same reason……
    \good concept

  • Dr. Holmes

    I was aprehensive at first in watching this but it was really good. Enjoy!

  • shai

    nice try
    they did try to understand their neighbor and reached out to learn. that is something that many young people today dont do. they touched briefly on the anti semetic angle of how the african american comunity here in crown heights veiws us and i feel they should have spent more time on that.
    that said it was nice to watch but i also think you should change the head line to african american. we all have different cultures, veiws and backrounds but color should never be a factor.

  • community

    This was a brave report for these mature girls to pioneer. Hopefully it will help prevent senseless acts of aggression this summer and beyond. Dialogue like this should continue in a community format. Good job!

  • WELL SAID

    VERY BRAVE AND COURAGEOUS OF THESE 4 YOUNG LADIES TO FIND OUT WHAT GOES ON RATHER THEN BELIEVING RUMORS AND STICKING WITH WHAT IS SAID RATHER THEN THE AUTHENTIC TRUTH! MAKES ME PROUD TO BE CHABAD- WE NEED TO BE MORE RESPECTFUL OF OTHER PEOPLE NO MATTER THE RACE OR RELIGION PAST IS PAST THERE ARE GOOD AND BAD PEOPLE IN EVERY COMMUNITY- SEEK OUT THE GOOD AND IGNORE AND KEEP AWAY FROM THE BAD!
    HAVE A BEAUTIFUL BLESSED DAY

  • mendoza

    i think its very importen to have dialoge , and this was very well done ….not so profashinol but very importen to clear away the streo typ b.s.

  • Our young women were represented well.

    Great job by the young woman who challenged them about “all the shootings” when they said “we’ll get angry but won’t do anything about it.” A great job by the woman who stood up for our kosher standards and standing up against intermarriage.

  • to #4

    Um, Shai?
    They’re not African American, they’re from the Carribean.

  • DIFFERENCES

    First, I truly am proud of these girls for taking this initiative.

    I should stress though, that the best way to resolve culture/race differences is to strive to truly understand the DIFFERENCES, and how each of our cultures are different in their own unique way.

  • truthi

    I would also want to tell them, since they may not know the history of how many Pogroms and the Holocaust, that because of that, we are also a people who stay protected. That is a vital point. Should be known, I mean, all the pogroms for centuries, but the holocaust SHOULD be known, but ok, its not. They have to take in that this is a factor in generations of trauma. The black people should be able to understand long running hatred and prejudice and what it can/has done to a group of people.

  • Orthodox evolved????

    Orthodoxy did not evolve!!!! It’s reform etc. that evolved, I dont think the married Lubavitcher woman explained it correctly

  • Anonymous

    These Caribbean girls are very mature and brave. They did a wonderful thing and tried to make peace with their neighbors, something all people should do. The Torah says that is what we should do, live in peace with our neighbors and never judge anyone.
    I regret that the Chabad girls were so offensive. The point of this project was to get passed the stereotypes, and learn about our neighbors, not to accuse them! The lady who who ran the discussion had a true point, just because we cannot eat their food or marry them does not mean we cannot be friendly neighbors. If it’s too hard for you to be decent and do that, at least do ‘Al Kiddush Hashem’.

    PS More people should take advantage of spell check.

  • mother in crown heights

    I liked it- but…. it presented us as a culturally backward people hopelessly hanging onto a medieval mindset- introduce them to the joys- we don’t like that parade because we believe women should cover up because of their dignity and the violence that does occur at it (I knew a Haitian woman who wouldn’t go for those reasons)- but we do have our lag b’omer parade which is totally different. We have a whole segment who chose this way of life because we liked it not that we were forced into it.

  • Alexa Bracha

    Mazal tov to the young reporters! May they go from strength to strength & grow in their outreach, bridging gaps & ushering in understanding! Thank you for this!

  • Yehudit

    A wonderful school project young ladies! Ihope you continue to learn and grow

  • labor day parade

    the fact that it isn’t a Jewish parade isn’t the main reason we don’t attend…
    tznius is a word that simply is not part of the vocabulary of many there and the music can litterally kill your hearing
    the part that they are marching to celebrate their country of origin is cool though

  • don-t like the responses

    of the Lubavitchers
    Torah isn’t mentioned
    Mitzvos aren’t mentioned
    you can’t explain the way we live without explaining where it all begins, what the source is…
    Orthodoxy did NOT develop

  • facts are

    facts are that the shootings, the muggings, the assaults, the break-ins, at least here in CH, ARE done by the black community
    and much of the hatred and lies about the Jews come straight out of the churches, things havent changed.
    One of my Carribean neighbors, who I am on very good terms with, told me the other day: Everyone knows that most Jews are rich…I asked him if he had anything to base that info on. No response.
    I told him that I wish it was so….
    May it takeh be like that, Moshiach NOW!

  • cl

    I thought this project was honest and well executed, though I have to admit that I cringed deeply upon hearing the Beis Rivka girls speak with such bigotry, racism and rudeness. I hope they’ve since had the opportunity to reflect on what it means to communicate and respect others. Sadly, they’re perpetuating the stereotype of rude, mean and elitist Jews.

    As a former gradate of Beis Rivka, I have to say that, in general, BRHS students often lack the ability to articulate ideas, or think and debate meaningfully. It’s a shame, because it leaves so much untapped potential.

  • wonderful idea

    info presented about Jewish and Lubavitch community is not really accurate

  • Ya a kov

    SUCH A GREAT IDEA! I work with alot of people from the carribean and they are great ! Maybe we should continue a lttle out reach to the righteous gentiles just like the Rebbe spoke of following the Rambam. We should be careful using any words describing a human beings skin color…. it can be easily misinterpeted and cause a negative reaction…. “schwvartza” very often one word which goy do not appreciate even though it is not be intended as an insult…. evil community leaders may also coin this to inflame anger ( I will not mention his name ) YA A KOV

  • not the full picture

    notice they only put approxomitely five words of what the bais rivkah girls said…I’m sure they explained about Torah and the joys of being jewish. Alas as lubavitchers thats what we’re good at–outreach. Shame they couldn’t show us some more of that.

  • Sarah

    I think it would be equally as helpful if four Beis Rivkah Girls went out and interviewed the surrounding African American community…break some stereotypes!!
    Otherwise some of the previous comments made here are bit condescending / elitist!!

  • ah Jew from Israel!

    WOW! You girls are thinking! Thank you for taking the time to look at the Lubavich community in a open minded and non judgmental way@

  • faye

    I agree with 30. I grew up in Crown Heights. I love being a Lubavitcher. But communication in the younger generation does not seem to be our strength. oh well, we have other invaluable strengths!

  • DK1985

    I was in Brower park with my daughter not too long ago, and there was an african american man with his child who I was chatting with and our kids were playing together. At one point he said to me, “You are the coolest orthodox woman I’ve ever seen!” I was taken aback a little, I said “Oh, why do you say so?” He said, “well because you are talking to me, and you seem very outgoing and just…nice.” He then asked me “ do all Jews here think we’re violent? They all seem to be afraid of us and think were bad.” I told him that I never thought so, and that I grew up not religious at all, and that even though I am now, a person is a person. It’s so important to be friendly to everyone you meet, and to be a good samritan and citizen. Even a smile to a stranger can make the biggest difference in how they view your culture/religion/however you want to categorize it. Theres a lot of ignorance, on both sides..and I think its up to us to change that. To teach our children that they are not so different from us- they have families, jobs, hard times, good times–the common dynamotor that makes us all, well, human.

  • Friend & neighbor

    Ilana & Dovid- thanks for portraying chassidim in your humble, thoughtful, insightful and very articulate way. You make us proud.