This virtual pop-up list features books, videos, and online resources highlighting Jewish art, culture, and history. It also provides resources for folks who wish to become better allies in combatting antisemitism. This guide was created in spring 2023 and last updated January 24, 2024. Suggested resources and feedback may be emailed to flaxman@saic.edu.
Embarking on self-education can be daunting. Where do you start? This section is a selection of resources to help if you are new to these topics. After checking these out, the sections below have resources to help you dig deeper.
The Jewish Americans [PBS Documentary Series Website] - Video Clips featured on the website are available here.
Antisemitism Uncovered: A Guide to Old Myths in a New Era [ADL Report]
From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America [Library of Congress Digital Exhibition]
Jewish Virtual Library [Plethora of resources organized by topic]
The American Jewish Archives - Their Digital Collections can be found here.
The Center for Jewish History: Art History Research Guide
The Center for Jewish History: Architecture and Design Research Guide
The Lillian & Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum: Explore the Collection [Digital Collections]
Chicago History
Encyclopedia of Chicago: Jews [Encyclopedia Entry]
2020 Jewish Chicago: Who We Are: Population Study [From the Berman Jewish Databank]
The Jews of Chicago by Resources about Antisemitism in the United Sates and its History
Reports of antisemitism, anti-Arab and anti-Muslim bias continue to surge across the US, new data shows [CNN, December 11, 2023]
Antisemitism, Islamophobia Surge in 2023, Watchdogs Say [VOA, December 29, 2023]
Jewish Virtual Library: Anti-Semitism Collection [Resources around the topic of Antisemitism]
Anti-Semitism or Antisemitism? [Article]
10 Tough Questions on Antisemitism Explained [Article, November 8, 2022]
On Antisemitism: Solidarity and the Struggle for Justice by
When the State of Israel claims to represent all Jewish people, defenders of Israeli policy redefine antisemitism to include criticism of Israel. Antisemitism is harmful and real in our society. What must also be addressed is how the deployment of false charges of antisemitism or redefining antisemitism can suppress the global progressive fight for justice. There is no one definitive voice on antisemitism and its impact. Jewish Voice for Peace has curated a collection of essays that provides a diversity of perspectives and standpoints. Each contribution explores critical questions concerning uses and abuses of antisemitism in the twenty-first-century, focusing on the intersection between antisemitism, accusations of antisemitism, and Palestinian human rights activism. This anthology provides a much-needed tool for Palestinian solidarity activists, teachers, as well as Jewish communities. Featuring contributions from Omar Barghouti, Judith Butler, and Rebecca Vilkomerson, as well as activists, academics, students, and cultural workers, On Political Solidarity and Justice includes the voices of Palestinian students and activists, and Jews that are often marginalized in mainstream discussions of antisemitism, including Jews of Color and Sephardi/Mizrahi Jews. Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) is a national, grassroots organization inspired by Jewish tradition to work for a just and lasting peace according to principles of human rights, equality, and international law for all the people of Israel and Palestine. JVP has over 200,000 online supporters, over sixty chapters, a youth wing, a Rabbinic Council, an Artist Council, an Academic Advisory Council, and an Advisory Board made up of leading U.S. intellectuals and artists.
A Short History of Anti-Semitism by Fighting Antisemitism
Fight Antisemitism [Resource Guide, Anti-Defamation League]
How to Fight Antisemitism [Article, Bernie Sanders, Jewish Currents, November 11, 2019]
How to Fight Anti-Semitism by The Yiddish Book Center's Wexler Oral History Project [Digital Collections]
People Love Dead Jews: Reports from a Haunted Present by The Art Story: Modern Artists in Jewish Art
Biographies and analysis of the work of artists that specialized in Jewish Art or somehow connected to the experience of the Jewish people.
Is There a New Yiddish Contemporary Visual Art? [Article, August 12, 2020]
Jewish Biographies: Artists [Resource from the Jewish Virtual Library]
Poems of Jewish Faith and Culture [Collection from the Poetry Foundation]
States of Mind: Toward an alternative future for Jewish art [Article, August 15, 2022]
Twenty-First Century Jewish Literature by Women in the US [Article, June 2021]
Fashion Resource Center Resources
Isaac Mizrahi by
A landmark survey of the work of Isaac Mizrahi, a trailblazing and influential American fashion designer, artist, and entrepreneur Beginning with Isaac Mizrahi's first fashion collection, which debuted to critical acclaim in 1986, and running though the present day, this stylish, lavishly illustrated book presents his signature couture collections. Mizrahi's exuberant couture style is classic American, inventively reimagined. He pioneered the concept of "high/low" in fashion, and was the first high-end fashion designer to create an accessibly priced mass-market line. Mizrahi approached other complex issues through his designs, as well--mixing questions of beauty and taste with those of race, religion, class, and politics. Although Mizrahi (b. 1961) is best known for his clothing, his work in theater, film, and television is also explored. The result is a spirited discourse on high versus low, modern glamour, and contemporary culture. Three essayists discuss Mizrahi's place in fashion history, his close connection to contemporary art, and the performative nature of his designs. New photography brings Mizrahi's fashions to life, and an interview with the artist offers an intimate perspective on his kaleidoscopic work in diverse media. Published in association with the Jewish Museum, New York Exhibition Schedule: Jewish Museum, New York (03/18/16-08/07/16)
A Perfect Fit: The Garment Industry and American Jewry (1860-1960) by
Flip on the entertainment news, open an issue of a popular magazine, or step into any department store?and you?ll appreciate the impact of the multibillion-dollar fashion industry on American culture. Yet its origins in the nineteenth-century ?rag trade? of Jewish tailors, cutters, pressers, peddlers, and shopkeepers have been underexplored. In this copiously illustrated volume, scholars from varied backgrounds consider the role of American Jews in creating, developing, and furthering the national garment industry from the Civil War forward. Drawn from an award-winning exhibition of the same title at the Yeshiva University Museum, A Perfect Fit provides a fascinating view of American society, culture, and industrialization. Essays address themes such as the development of the menswear industry; the early film industry and its relationship to American fashion; the relationship of the American industry to Britain and France; the acculturation of Jewish immigrants and its impact on American garment making; advertising history and popular culture; and regional centers of manufacturing. This multivalent group of essays compellingly weaves together important threads of the complex history of the American garment industry.
Connect: Jewish Institutions, Organizations, and Services
Chicago / Illinois
Chicago Jewish Historical Society
Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center
National
The American Jewish Historical Society
Lillian & Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum
The Maurice and Marilyn Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies at Brandeis