Investing in the Numbers and Narratives of Our Community
May 26th, 2020
We are in the midst of the Omer, the seven weeks between Passover and Shavuot. Counting is important during this time. Indeed, we mark each day of the Omer with blessing and reflection. Our Sages teach that the Omer mirrors the journey the Israelites took between the miracle of the Exodus and the giving of the Torah. Then, it was a physical journey. Today it is a spiritual journey, a process of introspection with each day and week of the Omer offering another opportunity for growth, learning and improvement. Counting and betterment go hand in hand.
What better time then to reflect on the findings of Counting Inconsistencies: An Analysis of American Jewish Population Studies with an Emphasis on Jews of Color, a report co-authored by a team from Stanford University and the University of San Francisco, led by Dr. Ari Kelman that we supported last year, in order to give an approximate estimation of Jews of Color in the United States.
Counting Inconsistencies is a meta-analysis of 25 prior demographic and population surveys, which some of us have funded. The report sheds light on the numerous inconsistencies these studies have had in collecting data and identified four ways in which demographic reports – both secular and Jewish – undercount people of color.
Being counted matters. This emphasis on counting is abundant in our tradition, whether in the Omer or the detailed explanation the Torah gives about the ancient census. And it matters this very day, too, as our country goes through a census that itself has historically undercounted people of color. It matters as we see marginalized communities suffering more from a pandemic because of health data and policy that consistently counted them out.
Read the full blog in eJewish Philanthropy