Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 3:04
Being Black & Jewish : April Powers celebrates inclusion across the diaspora
We're all saying, how can academic institutions just say an entire branch of study is not important? Can you speak to that experience when you heard about it first, as somebody who, first of all, enjoyed studying it, and second of all, is a black American, how do you respond to something like that? And what kind of conversations have you already had about it? Because I'm sure you're in them now
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 4:43
Deborah, thank you so much for starting this conversation. I'm excited and I'm bummed out, and I'm hopeful all at the same time. I'm responding now from Sacramento, where I finished talking with some UC Davis students, and what I told them is, please vote. Please continue to show up even when you're not wanted there. Every little vote counts
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 1:50
And I guess my follow up question to all of this is there are people who are so brave to confront those who are holding them back, and particularly students who feel that there's a huge gap in the courage of even their teachers and their administration and what they want to see happen in their classrooms. I'm talking about all the censorship. I'm talking about just the narrow mindedness of some teachers
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 2:42
You're seeing fewer kids feeling like they need to go to college. I know that some of the business folks that I talk to say the college degree for what? So they can indoctrinate these kids and have them come to my place of business and not aware of the world or not understanding things, and they're being indoctrinated into this thing and that thing. I think I love documentation, and I think there is strength in that
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 2:15
And can you give us your experience first and then also stretch out to what does Aspira mean to you and what should we think about it in terms of inclusivity? And what should I relate how should I relate to it in reference to the state of Israel? My sisters joyfully moved there 35 years ago to feel at home and they're so happy and their children are so happy. And it just made me think when you were talking about or when I was looking at your website about the concept of diaspora
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 2:55
And Jews were forced and that wasn't the first time, but they were forced to finally flee altogether or were taken as slaves into different parts of Europe. And of course, we know that the black slave trade kidnapped and enslaved millions of us and brought us here. And so there's one thing to be fleeing violence, and it's another thing to be stolen from your land and have that land stolen. Being in Diaspora makes me think of all the different ways that the African diaspora expresses itself globally
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 3:02
I understand that it's connected to violence and there's so much sorrow. And in the word for me, there's separation. There's a feeling of stretched emotions across large continents and vast waters. It's much easier now with WhatsApp and swell and FaceTime. I was thinking while you were talking that I think the closest thing to feeling connected to a place and feeling like you have agency is having a voice