Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It

by: Mik Moore

Tue Sep 25, 2007 at 16:24:49 PM EDT


Jewish Women Watching is out with another provocative campaign, this one for Sukkot. The theme, in their own words:

This Sukkot, as you leave your home and enter a temporary dwelling... Go beyond your comfort zone and demand real change. What's welcome in your Sukkah? Embrace The Treyf.


I found two of the posters/Sukkah decorations particularly interesting. Dividing items between Kosher ("pitying others, playing it safe") and Treyf (confronting ourselves, taking a risk), the first labels "Building houses in New Orleans during Spring Break" Kosher, while "Building the movement against gentrification in our cities" is Treyf. The second labels "Distribute meals at a soup kitchen on Mitzvah Day" Kosher, while "Distributing our resources so all families can provide for themselves" is Treyf.

The dichotomy represented by these examples is not necessarily about pitying others vs confronting ourselves, but it definitely does reflect the classic split between service on the one hand and advocacy/organizing/systemic change on the other. Although the implication is NOT that the kosher items are "bad" or unworthy, it does emphatically state that they are insufficient (ie: if you want "real change" look behind door number two). Kosher is good, but Treyf is great.

Ah, yes, treyf IS great, as those folks who eat treyf never tire of telling me.
Mik Moore :: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It
Ironically, in this day and age there is nothing particularly subversive about Jews who eat treyf. And there are many Jews who have committed their free time, if not their lives, to the kind of work labeled "treyf" by JWW. But Jewish institutions ARE often risk averse, and it is often easier to serve food to the poor than it is to advocate for higher taxes on, say, those earning more than $200,000 per year.

But is NOT easy to keep kosher, and it is NOT easy (or common) to volunteer your time to rebuild homes in the Gulf or even to serve food to the hungry. The world - and our community - would be a better place if MORE Jews and Jewish institutions engaged in service work, particularly sustained or intensive Jewish service learning that leads to the kind of advocacy JWW embraces.

What JWW really wants... OK, I'll speak for myself here, What I really want is for those items labeled "treyf" by JWW to become "kosher." As JWW says, helping people become self-sufficient and combating gentrification to preserve affordable neighborhoods is about (in a personal sense) "confronting ourselves, taking a risk." But that does NOT make these approaches subversive of Judaism. The opposite is true, or at least there are many Jews (kosher and treyf) who make that case.

This just so happens to be what Jewish Funds for Justice is attempting to do. We have long supported the kind of systemic change work JWW is calling for and we will continue to do so. However, we have recently embraced Jewish service learning as well. Through our Spark Center, we take people on Spring Break trips to rebuild homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. But our partners, guides, and educators are local organizers committed to systemic change, to grassroots advocacy, men and women do not believe in band aids... but who also need homes to live in. Our goal is to make it difficult to return from one of our trips without confronting oneself; without feeling pushed to take a risk, to continue to work toward a more just society.

So, here here, JWW. Let's embrace the treyf. And then, let's kasher it.


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Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It | 15 comments
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
i'm not sure i agree with mik on the meanings of "kosher" and "treyf" implied by the fabulous JWW postcards. as the JWW press release said quite clearly, the distinction they're pointing to is one made by the so-called 'mainstream' jewish organizations and the self-appointed 'leaders' who claim to speak for our communities. as they despribe it, they've paired

a social justice issue that is considered "kosher" in the organized Jewish community with one that is considered "treyf"


which relate to the same kinds of injustice in the world. the difference in response they're highlighting does, in my experience, very exactly parallel the kosher/treyf dichotomy. 'kosher' issues are acceptable for publicly jewish advocacy and endorsement; 'treyf' ones are more-or-less acceptable for goyim, and may be okay for 'that kind' of jew behind closed doors, but are not to be seen in publicly jewish ways and places.

seems to me that the point JWW is making is how little this 'kosher'/'treyf' split has to do with the actual needs of the communities we live in, our actual responsibilities in the world, and the actual necessities of challenging those who hold power. how little, in fact, it reflects anything but what mik refers to very politely as 'risk aversion'. it might better be named more explicitly:

- putting the interests of donors over the needs of communities (advocate redistributing wealth, or even raising taxes on the richest 1%? not when they're where your budget comes from.)

- focusing on injustice farther from home at the expense of nearby issues (fight displacement and eviction in poor and working-class neighborhoods? hard to do when your staff get paid a gentrification wage.)

- reinforcing toxic power dynamics within jewish communities (fight sexism and homophobia in synagogues, rabbinical schools and Federation offices? not when there are less 'divisive', if largely fictional, issues to focus on.)

- turning a blind eye to prejudices which don't affect white ashkenazim (prioritize fighting anti-arab racism and anti-muslim xenophobia? not if it means confronting racist jewish elected officials and executive directors.)

- denying that jews can be oppressors (take action to support palestinian human rights? not while any other unjust regime exists anywhere in the world. and certainly not when it might offend a major donor.)

risk averse? hypocritical? or just wildly at odds with the beliefs of most u.s. jews? you make the call.

in any case, it seems to me that these organizations are in the position of someone calling a potato treyf because there wasn't a tzaddik sitting next to it from planting to plate who can guarantee that it never touched a clam.

theirs is not the fast that we desire. we desire abstention from all these behaviors, and the active choice to embrace strategies aimed at structural change, not ameliorative measures.

i see JWW's call as in part a demand that we progressive and radical jews acknowledge that the definitions the jewish right (the so-called 'mainstream') uses for kosher and treyf - both in food and in politics - are not our own, and that if our commitments mean anything, they mean trusting and acting on our own definitions. i mean, if you don't trust the Orthodox Union to decide who you sleep with, why do you trust them to decide what you eat? and unless you think ron lauder and his ilk have the same priorities as you do, why let the groups they fund define what can be said in a jewish voice?

- dos gezunt iz in dir / la salute e in voi -  
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
I had no intention of sounding snide, and still less about JWW as an organization. My objections are to the poster, and indeed their comments began as a comparison of the two new Sukkah posters that were available this year.

Let me be clear: while I have some ambivalence about JWW's anonymity, there is no question that many of their other campaigns have been provocative, challenging, thought-provoking, and successful as such. In particular, Strange Bedfellows / Practice Safe Politics was a work of pure genius.

As far as my own "anonymity," feel free to click on my name. It'll take you to a blog that tells you exactly who I am. As someone professionally active in the Jewish community in a strictly non-political organization, I'm hoping that using my first name will make it super-clear that I'm speaking only for myself. But I provide a link to my (personal) blog in order to make sure people know who's writing.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
I would like to know what exactly they mean when they say they are against gentrification. If they mean preserving historic neighborhoods and their low-rise culture, I am all for that. But I fear that is not what they mean.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
Nice piece, Mik.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
I think that opposition to gentrification means oppostion to wealthy real estateniks and to speculators who push working families out of stable neighborhoods (the recent article on Far Rockaway reminded me of that). Unspoken is whether many of these gentrifiers are Jews. Unspoken, too, is the value of neighborhoods with a mix of working class and middle class families for urban culture and especially for Jewish urban culture.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
DDM,

Your point (if I understand it correctly) is an important one. The working and middle class Jewish neighborhoods do contribute an intense vibrancy and culture like no other Jewish neighborhoods, no doubt. Today, they are mostly Orthodox.

For secular Jews...well, I think we all live in the shadow of the L.E.S. I read a great explanation as to why the L.E.S. Jews were so photogenic: because of the intensity of how they used the street.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
I posted this over at Jewschool, but perhaps it bears repeating here:

I'm struck by the contrast between this poster and the JFSJ-cosponsored immigration poster (see the JSpot.org post and the poster itself).

The JWW poster (and by the way, in Los Angeles, JWW=Jewish World Watch - very kosher) sets up a series of either-or distinctions and invites the reader to take sides. Kosher=safe & conventional & slightly bad, in the way that convention always is bad. Treyf=dangerous & innvovative & morally superior, in the way that the prophet always judges those to whom s/he prophesies.

The JFSJ/HIAS/etc. poster (which credits a number of organizations already involved in lots of the things on the "treyf" side of the JWW poster) embraces the Sukkot tradition of welcoming and asks, simply, "Are our doors open?" The poster - which clearly has a position - doesn't force the reader to take sides but rather invites everyone into the conversation. More importantly, it doesn't mock people who are doing their best to do the right thing, even if it is "merely" kosher.

It really highlights the different approach to social change and intra-Jewish advocacy that JWW and JFSJ represent. If I wanted to preach to the choir and look hip doing it, I guess I'd go with the JWW poster. But if I really wanted to make people think, and maybe make a little change, I'm pretty sure I'd go with the JFSJ flyer.

Chag sameach....
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
Shawn,

there are fundamental differences between the organizations that made the immigration poster and JWW, and I think those differences were clearly represented in the messaging in the poster- Both of these messages are needed.
JWW is not focused on Jewish service, advocacy or organizing for the most part- as anyone who's been familiar with their past campaigns knows, their goal is to push the envelope make people engaged with the status quo slightly uncomfortable. The question is - have they successfully done that here?
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
Aliza, I understand the difference between the two organizations. But I do think the goal of both posters was to invite (JFSJ/HIAS/etc) or challenge (JWW) people to question their assumptions and take a new look at the status quo -- metaphorically to step outside the home into the other-space of the sukkah. Your question, though, is the right one.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
I don't want to enter into an "either-or" between the Jewish Fund for Social Justice and its immigration poster (both of which I admire) on one side versus Jewish Women Watching and its poster on the other. That said, I strongly disagree with Shawn's snide put-downs of JWW. I greatly admire the provocative, challenging work of Jewish Women Watching. To accuse them of "preaching to the choir" to "look hip" is simply unfair. Despite Shawn's attack, the JWW poster HAS made people think, as is evident from Mik's post and the exchanges which have followed.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
rozele -
unless people will be hanging the JWW press release next to the posters in their sukkah, the message you bring to life will not reach the typical viewer. the message on the cards themselves it what will get through, and that message was the focus of my post.

progressive Jews face many challenges in changing some of the things you describe; one obsticle has been the unwillingness among some of our allies to include more observant - but still progressive - Jews in our efforts. to some progressive jews, religious Jews are treyf. in fact, to some people, kosher is treyf. this has not served progressives well and it is misguided on its face. does JWW's kosher/treyf dichodomy help or hurt this dynamic?

I fully appreciate the spirit and substance of JWW's challenge. Where it falls short for me is my belief that it is too... dare i say... conventional?

Bob -
POI - JFSJ stands for Jewish Funds for Justice, despite the big "S" which emphasizes the plural "Funds" (before JFJ's merger with The Shefa Fund it was Fund, singular).

Point taken about the JWW posters' ability to get people thinking... that has always been JWW's strong suit. Curious to know your thought on JWW's anonymity.

"When something important is going on, silence is a lie." -- A.M. Rosenthal
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
Mik--Using the singular for Jewish Funds (plural) for Justice was a typo.

Re Internet anonymity... you already know the answer to your question. I'd like to see people speak out against Internet anonymity. I'd like to see the editor of jspot speak out against Internet anonymity. I'd like to see those who post on jspot stand behind their words with their full names, as some of us already do.
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
Thanks, Shawn, for your comments and for the link to your blog. My remarks about Internet anonymity were in no way aimed at you as an individual. If it appeared that way, I'm sorry about that.

But I'd still like people to speak out against Internet anonymity!
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
mik:

i actually think that by their choice of "kosher" issues, JWW makes it quite clear with or without the press release that what they're talking about is the priorities endorsed by the self-appointed jewish 'mainstream'. which is, after all, their consistent theme over many years of provocative and brilliant work, whether the immediate target is abe foxman, makor, or the conservative movement's leadership.

i'm also inclined to argue that the use of the kosher/treyf dichotomy itself also implies this: i mean, in all seriousness, there is a genuine problem and contradiction with accepting the OU's authority on dietary matters when we (progressive yidn, observant or not) disagree with them on almost every subject, be it halakhic or political. and that's not even going into the problems of the heksher industry as industry.

it may also be worth pointing out that how easy it is to keep kosher depends on where you live, while almost nowhere in the jewish world are the 'treyf' priorities JWW puts forward on, let alone near the front of, organizational agendas. and part of that is the definition of acceptable jewish activism as "advocacy", "service", etc. as opposed to organizing for structural change (in our communities and with folks in other communities).

JWW's cards don't say kosher priorities are easy - they say that it's safe to limit ourselves to them. because they define our positions in relation to other jews; because they let our communities and organizations off the hook; because they allow us to maintain the comparative privileges that many of us have (and all of us share, in relation to the israeli government and palestinian people). and in the u.s. in 2007, a very significant axis of privilege has to do with religion. speaking from a position of 'faith' is about as privileged a stance as its possible to take in the current political environment without putting on a uniform.

which brings me to the obstacles of organizing across the secular/religious boundary: they're real. as someone who comes from the secular side, however, i think any analysis that focuses on secularists' reluctance to work with religious folks is evading the longer-standing, more significant problem. which is of the religiously-oriented minority in u.s. jewish communities refusal to acknowledge secular jews as authentically jewish (as seen in, for instance, the use of 'judaism' as if it meant 'jewishness'), and engage with secular folks in ways that are not about 're-connecting', 're-affiliating', or otherwise missionizing us. at the moment, this is done from a position of extreme societal privilege and legitimation; organizing in ways that don't challenge the increasing religious dominance of u.s. society and culture reinforces secularists' skepticism about working with religiously-oriented progressives.

i also think it's interesting that problematizing the metaphorical aspects of 'kosherness' in our communities is so easy to dismiss as 'conventional', while challenging the literal aspects of kashres (around cruelty to food animals and farmworkers, agricultural sustainability, etc) is seen as obviously important. is this simply the greater force of hegemonic 'common sense' as opposed to law? the greater acceptability of working within the halakhic system than challenging its premises? the currently fashionable compulsion among liberals to Take Faith Seriously and never extend its own categories critically or parodically in the ways they're extended to support religion? or just that JWW's critique of the jewish nonprofit industrial complex comes a bit too close to home?

- dos gezunt iz in dir / la salute e in voi -  
Re: Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It (0.00 / 0)
rozele -
the JWW cards, seen by those without your perspective on what represent the Jewish establishment, are not at all clear. i'm not sure how you can argue otherwise... yes, perhaps those with some knowledge of JWW's history could surmise what you deem obvious, but it by no means assured. and again, those who DO see the connection - like yourself - are part of the choir that need not be preached to.

as for the OU... many people keep kosher without worrying about the OU's hechsher. to imply that because of the OU the very word "kosher" no longer means "kosher" it to concede my point from the comments... that to some folks kosher=treyf. you understand why this is a problem, no? our collective critique of the OU may be spot on, but implying that those who accept the OU hechsher are themselves suspect is arrogant and off-putting (to put it mildly).

while taking wacks - some well deserved - at the establishment feels good, blanket statements don't hold up. In Boston, the "Jewish establishment" through the JCRC has been involved in issues deemed "trayf" by JWW. Are the RAC and NCJW established Jewish groups? Do they only work on kosher issues?

i found this statement of yours particularly interesting: "i think any analysis that focuses on secularists' reluctance to work with religious folks is evading the longer-standing, more significant problem. which is of the religiously-oriented minority in u.s. jewish communities refusal to acknowledge secular jews as authentically jewish..." i'd say both are a problem, but I am tired of pointing my finger at the other guy and saying he started it. why not focus on what we can do, namely, clean up our own house. perhaps the observant allies we've been allienating could be helpful in fixing the problems you articulate. because what we've been doing for decades has not been working...

in closing, you wonder whether or not JWW's critique comes a bit too close to home. to the extent that there are Jewish organizations doing the kind of treyf work JWW is calling for, JFSJ is close to the top of the list. the goal of my critique is not to defend JFSJ (who i don't see as a target here) but to push JWW to get even better. I think they are strong enough to handle it.

"When something important is going on, silence is a lie." -- A.M. Rosenthal
Embracing the Treyf, or Kashering It | 15 comments
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