The Jewish Poor, Recent Immigrants in NYC and the Challenge of Community

A fascinating (and surprising) story about recent Jewish immigrants in New York City. The myth is that they are all rich and comfortable, the reality is this story of poverty. DP

by Jacob Blumenfeld

New Voices : We’re not poor, but we used to be. Back in Europe, Spain, the Middle East, Russia. Not anymore. Now we Jews live in relative comfort. Our parents and grandparents have struggled to make this place called America home. They’ve worked hard, and gained the following generations a place in the middle and upper classes. We can now relax, practice Judaism in safety, eat well, dance, go to school, get jobs, teach, own a home, and raise children all without worrying over economic issues or material needs. Those days are over. Free at last, thank America almighty, we’re free at last.

Or at least that’s how the myth goes.

Jewish poverty, in fact, is a huge problem, and it’s not going away. The myth of Jewish economic comfort does nothing to alleviate the suffering of American Jews in dire need, but rather, only helps to marginalize them further. The fact that most Jews in America who do live in poverty are recent immigrants who speak over 200 different languages and don’t necessarily share light skin privilege doesn’t help. Indeed, the intersections of race, class and language make the issue of Jewish poverty particularly difficult to untangle.

Scraping by in New York City

So who are the Jewish poor and how many are there? Let’s focus on New York City, the largest Jewish community outside of Israel. According to the January 2004 Report on Jewish Poverty commissioned by the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty and the UJA-Federation of New York, approximately 311,700 Jewish households in the city are poor, which is defined as living on one-and-a-half times the income of someone at the poverty line.

Be sure to read the rest of this story! This is only a small part of it.