10 Days of T'shuvah
The 10 days between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur are a time of critical self-analysis. This introspective task, which is called cheshbon hanefesh (“an accounting of the soul”), can often feel abstract or amorphous. This page offers a tool for a guided process of increased self-awareness around the issue of race in America. Building on my Rosh Hashanah 5781 sermon "Scraping the Rust,” which looked at the question of racial justice through the lens of t’shuvah (repentance), this page provides a link to an option or two of something to watch, read, or do on each of the 10 Days of Awe. Whether you choose to spend 15 minutes a day or invest a little longer, these resources will help you to expand your own understanding of the way that racism, implicit bias, and white supremacy operate in each of us.
I suspect many of your nightstands look like mine, piled high with the anti-racism books I promised myself I’d read after the death of George Floyd. With this mammoth pile of books, I’ve managed to make the daunting task of confronting racism more overwhelming, not less (and there have also been interesting critiques of the impact of these reading lists). My hope is that these short and diverse offerings will help all of us to break free of the rut of “thinking about acting,” so that we can start acting to make real change in ourselves and our world.
I look forward to reflecting with you in some of our Yom Kippur afternoon sessions and in the months to come on the realizations and new year's resolutions that will spring forth from this process.
-Rabbi Fixler
Tishrei 1: September 19
I have around 15 minutes:
- Read "Who Gets to Be Afraid In America?" by Ibram X. Kendi
-OR- - Watch "Let's get to the root of racial injustice" by Megan Ming Francis
I have longer:
Tishrei 2: September 20
I have around 15 minutes:
- Read "How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them" by Vernā Myers
I have longer:
- Watch "Allegories on race and racism" by Camara Jones
Tishrei 3: September 21
I have around 15 minutes:
- Read "America's Racial Contract is Killing Us" by Adam Serwer
-OR- - Watch "Amber Ruffin Shares a Lifetime of Traumatic Run-Ins with Police" from Late Night with Seth Meyers
I have longer:
- Listen to "A Decade of Watching Black People Die" from NPR's Codeswitch
Tishrei 4: September 22
I have around 15 minutes:
- Read "Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack" by Peggy McIntosh
-OR- - Watch "How Studying Privilege Systems Can Strengthen Compassion" by Peggy McIntosh
I have longer:
- Listen to "Starting at Home: Building an Intercultural Jewish Community While Becoming Anti-Racist" with Yolanda Savage-Narva (Wednesday, September 23, 7:00 p.m.)
-OR- - Listen to "Ask Code Switch - What about your friends?" from NPR’s Codeswitch
Tishrei 5: September 23
I have around 15 minutes:
- Watch "How racial bias works -- and how to disrupt it" by Jennifer L. Eberhardt
I have longer:
- Watch "Why Covid-19 is Killing So Many Black People w/ Dr. Uché Blackstock" by For Harriet
Tishrei 6: September 24
I have around 15 minutes:
- Take the Implicit Association Test to explore your own implicit bias. This is a tool developed by psychologists which has been administered millions of times over the last 20+ years.
I have longer:
- Listen to "Resmaa Menakem: Notice the Rage; Notice the Silence" from the On Being podcast
Tishrei 7: September 25
I have around 15 minutes:
- Watch "How to deconstruct racism, one headline at a time" by Baratunde Thurston
-OR- - Read "Racism has shaped public transit, and it’s riddled with inequities" from Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research
I have longer:
- Watch "We had The Talk with our sons: Being Black in America" by Beleaf In Fatherhood
-OR- - Explore and read the articles that are part of "The 1619 Project" from the New York Times
Tishrei 8: September 26
I have around 15 minutes:
- Read "The Civil Rights Act was a victory against racism. But racists also won." by Ibram X. Kendi
-OR- - Listen to “Your Body Being Used” from NPR’s Morning Edition and “When Civility Is Used As A Cudgel Against People Of Color” from NPR’s All things Considered
I have longer:
- Watch "I Am Not Your Negro" on Netflix
-OR- - Read “The Case for Reparations” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Tishrei 9: September 27 (Kol Nidre)
I have around 15 minutes:
- Read "Welcome To The Anti-Racism Movement — Here’s What You’ve Missed" by Ijeoma Oluo
I have longer:
- Listen to "Brené with Ibram X. Kendi on How to Be an Antiracist" from the Unlocking Us podcast
-OR- - Explore "How to Be a Strong White Ally" by Maxwell Boise and book mark what you will read after the 10 days are over
Tishrei 10: September 28 (Yom Kippur)
I have around 15 minutes:
- Read "9 Phrases Allies Can Say When Called Out Instead of Getting Defensive" by Sam Dylan Finch
I have longer:
- Read "Detour Spotting for White Anti-Racists" by Joan Olsson
I want to credit the amazing project Justice in June by Autumn Gupta and Bryanna Wallace for the inspiration for this resource. If you are looking to expand your learning for a whole month, please check out their terrific tool.