May 2024: Jewish American Heritage Month
Contributor: The Inclusion. Diversity. Equity. Advocacy (I.D.E.A.) Committee
May is Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM). It is the annual celebration of more than 350 years of Jewish American culture, contributions, and accomplishments. Originally incepted by congress in 1980 as Jewish Heritage Week, in 2006, President George W. Bush proclaimed that May would be celebrated as Jewish American Heritage Month. More than 5.8 million American adults (or 2.4% of all U.S. adults) can be classified as Jewish. “They’ve built our cities, cured our sick. They’ve paved the way in the sciences and the law, in our politics and in the arts. They remain our leaders, our teachers, our neighbors and our friends” (President Barack Obama on Jewish American Heritage Month).
The first Jewish congregation was founded in Buffalo in 1847 and was located on Pearl Street. As of 2023 roughly 10,000 individuals living in Western New York are Jewish. Many current residents and institutions can trace their beginnings and heritage to the East side, where many Jewish immigrants chose to settle.
Explore Jewish American Culture, History, and Events across Western New York:
Levy and Daniel Families Art Gallery & Bunis Family Art Gallery
https://www.jccbuffalo.org/art-galleries/
Jewish Repertory Theater – Crossing Delancey
https://www.jccbuffalo.org/crossing-delancey/
Buffalo International Jewish Film Festival
https://www.jccbuffalo.org/bijff/
Jewish Buffalo History Center – Exhibitions
https://jewishbuffalohistory.org/
Buffalo Jewish Federation – My Jewish Buffalo
https://buffalojewishfederation.org/my-jewish-buffalo/
Jewish Community Center of Greater Buffalo
https://www.jccbuffalo.org/community/arts-culture/
Educational Resources:
Holocaust Education Resource Organization of Buffalo - Request a Holocaust Speaker
https://buffalojewishfederation.org/hero-request-a-speaker/
Jewish-American History in Buffalo
https://www.buffaloah.com/h/jews/index.html
There is an official website for Jewish American Heritage Month that combines the work of the Library of Congress, various National Archives, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Additional Sources:
What is Jewish American Heritage Month?
https://www.ajc.org/news/what-is-jewish-american-heritage-month
Jewish American Heritage Month.gov
https://www.jewishheritagemonth.gov/index.html
PEW Research Center - The size of the U.S. Jewish population
https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2021/05/11/the-size-of-the-u-s-jewish-population/
Jewish American Heritage Month Toolkit
https://jewishamericanheritage.org/toolkit/
Jewish Buffalo
https://buffalojewishfederation.org/
Resources
https://jewishamericanheritage.org/toolkit/