The Cultures of the American Jewish Left with Benjamin Balthaser and Dania Rajendra

Drawing on Balthaser’s recent book Citizens of the Whole World, we will discuss contemporary Jewish cultures, identities, and practices, tracing them back to the revolutionary traditions of the 1930s and beyond. Balthaser's book explores radical Jewish novels, memoirs, and oral histories to uncover a continuous lineage of Marxist internationalism, Jewish solidarity with Third World struggles, and deep connections between Jewish and Black radicals during the Civil Rights era.

The three will bring these histories into dialogue with the present moment, reflecting on what this legacy means for organizing today, for reimagining Judaism beyond nationalism, and for building movements capable of sustaining collective liberation. Together, they consider how past struggles can inform a diasporic Jewish traditions of solidarity and internationalism offer essential tools for the world we are fighting to build.