The Jewish Diasporist

Rabbi Chel Mandell of the Tzimtzum Community [https://www.tzimtzumcommunity.com/] and Jewish educator and Diasporist Podcast Co-Host, Ben Yanowitz were invited on to local Santa Cruz radio station KSQD for an Interview for “Talk of the Bay [https://open.spotify.com/show/4m6hQJCYZggMPP5ZYIm9bX?si=R5-1ehvaQxywt8juwVLSkQ],” hosted by Meilin Obinata, to explore the complexities of Jewish communal life in Santa Cruz, CA. The Jewish community in Santa Cruz is a microcosm of our diaspora at large. Change is happening and legacy communal institutions are lagging behind at best, and actively hostile at worst. Thankfully independent communities like Tzimtzum, which embody a queer diasporist Jewishness, are organizing to ground our quest for collective liberation in Jewish ritual and spirituality. Throughout the discussion we explored different religious and secular Jewish traditions which inform our understanding of the non-Zionist and diasporist Jewish future we are building, and how the pandemic and the post-10/7 Gaza genocide and international political environment have accelerated political polarization and transformed the way people engage with Judaism/Jewishness. Check out Meilin's work on KSQD here [https://ksqd.org/author/meilin/]! Learn about the Tzimtzum Community here [https://www.tzimtzumcommunity.com/]! Subscribe to our collaborative YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@HamotziNetwork] Follow us on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thejewishdiasporistpod/] If you like the work we're doing here, please consider supporting us on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TheJewishDiasporist]! Big thank you to Aly Halpert [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ilJZ0nHG41CYddwNuP3f6?si=zUPsTutESDqEiaCKdgzvRw] for continuing to allow us to use her music!

We made it to Episode 50! Today, it's just Zach and Ben talking about the recent elections to the World Zionist Congress. They start discussing by how Zionism can (and should) be defined, followed by an overview of the voting process, the participating slates, they pros and cons of voting, and some possible alternatives to Jewish self-determination. Zach's ongoing "Bundism Today" series can be found here [https://www.derspekter.org/bundism-today-a-case-for-jewish-autonomist-diasporist-socialism-2/] Subscribe to our collaborative YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@HamotziNetwork] Follow us on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thejewishdiasporistpod/] If you like the work we're doing here, please consider supporting us on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TheJewishDiasporist]! Big thank you to Aly Halpert [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ilJZ0nHG41CYddwNuP3f6?si=zUPsTutESDqEiaCKdgzvRw] for continuing to allow us to use her music!

This week, Ben and Zach are joined by two organizers based in Palestine-Israel whose lives and political journeys inform powerful reflections on displacement, state oppression, solidarity, and the possibilities of joint struggle. Kastuś, originally from Minsk, has moved through various diasporic contexts—Belarus, Australia, and now Tel Aviv — shares his path from growing up under authoritarianism to joining the Belarusian uprising in 2020, and working with Kompass Media (Ep. 26 [https://rss.com/podcasts/diasporist/1371456/]) and on his own to alleviate harm and expose the reality of state (and state-backed) violence. Mohammed, a 48’ Palestinian from Umm al-Fahm, brings deep insight from growing up as part of an activist family and community, and reflects on his experience as a Palestinian student at an Israeli university in the wake of October 7. Our conversation draws provocative parallels between the histories of European Jews and Palestinians—without flattening their differences—as a way to think about shared experiences of dispossession, repression, and resistance. On this 82nd anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, it is as important as ever to reject nationalist histories and challenge all forms of domination and hate. Learn more [https://oko.press/oko-press-reporter-on-the-refugee-trail-episode-iv]a bout the Polish-Belarusian (EU) Border Refugee crisis and consider supporting activists here [https://www.firefund.net/nobordersteampoland]! Subscribe to our collaborative YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@HamotziNetwork] Follow us on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thejewishdiasporistpod/] If you like the work we're doing here, please consider supporting us on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TheJewishDiasporist]! Thank you to Monsieur Jack for his beautiful rendition of the Partisan Song "Zog Nit Keynmol [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_V8ZJz--4TU]"

Becoming Gamers and Deporting Hitler - Let's Play Social Democracy: An Alternate History After much consideration, we have decided to relaunch the Jewish Diasporist for its 3rd year as a GAMING CHANNEL! Check out the full Let's Play episode [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwaDT5CrDJg] in video on youtube! Play the game here! https://red-autumn.itch.io/social-democracy [https://red-autumn.itch.io/social-democracy] Thank you to Dan Nichols [https://open.spotify.com/artist/4gkNgLMQGE2fM2pFHlrzTy?si=qqJk-ZOhTmirIx8-2etGWw] for continuing to allow us to use his Aleinu L'shabeiach. Originally released on Youtube on 1 April 2025 (In reality, Zach and Ben have been busy organizing and working locally and transnationally in their own communities. Stay tuned for more diasporic Jewish educational content. Happy 2nd Anniversary to the Jewish Diasporist Podcast and Happy Belated April Fools Day.)

This week Zach and Ben are joined by Kofi, who recently took part in the Black Jewish Liberation Collective’s (BJLC) “Teshuvah Across Waters,” the inaugural cohort of a sustained solidarity and education project in relationship to the Hebrew Ibo community in Nigeria. In our conversation we explored a variety of topics. Kofi's experiences as a Jew by choice, the Afro-Jewish reality of being part of both African and Jewish diasporas, Ibo Jewish communties' relationship to hegemonic Jewishness (Zionism, Orthodoxy and Ashkenormativity) and much more. This episode is in direct dialogue with Rafael Shimunov's recent interview with one of the organizer's of the trip, Rabbi Dr. Koach Frazier and two other participants. Check out Beyond the Pale [https://open.spotify.com/episode/07IPWcIHglTtubTsn5PoO9?si=f53099e0f1334b13]'s Episode on the BJLC's Teshuvah Across Waters to learn more about this powerful heritage trip. Subscribe to our collaborative YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@HamotziNetwork] Follow us on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thejewishdiasporistpod/] If you like the work we're doing here, please consider supporting us on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TheJewishDiasporist]! Thank you to Dan Nichol [https://open.spotify.com/artist/4gkNgLMQGE2fM2pFHlrzTy?si=OHtS5GLfTSiqmmuXRvkTKA]'s for continuing to allow us to use his music!