Barack O. Mandela growing up in Long Beach, California.
This essay is the first of a series of articles about my experiences as a black, Jewish, American, Israeli. This will be an exclusive “memoir” published on the “Times of Israel”.
I was born and raised in East Long Beach, California which is considered an inner-city ghetto or “hood”. While I was a law student, I converted to both Reform and Orthodox Judaism. I then moved to Israel for nearly six years where I served in the Israel Defense Forces. After 9/11, I served in the United States Army.
I have struggled to combine my African American traditions with my Jewish traditions. For guidance, I read Rebecca Walker’s “Black, White, & Jewish: Autobiography of a Shifting Self”. In addition, I met with Ethiopian Jews to talk about their traditions, culture, and history. I wanted to understand the “black-Jewish” experience.
Mexico
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