Havurah Shalom

The Havurah Book Group is a venue for discussion of complex, controversial issues. We encourage members to engage one another through sharing ideas and knowledge. Books chosen by the group are discussed in monthly meetings. Members come to discussions that interest them.

This month’s book is We are Not Here to Be Bystanders, by Linda Sarsour. Harriet Cooke will lead the discussion.

Linda Sarsour, co-organizer of the Women’s March, shares an “unforgettable memoir” (Booklist) about growing up Palestinian Muslim American, feminist, and what moved her to become a globally recognized activist on behalf of marginalized communities across our country.

            The author breaks through stereotypes of Palestinian women and offers an inside view of her beloved Palestinian culture, and the experiences that led her to become a courageous activist and organizer.

            Sarsour grew up in Brooklyn NY, spending summers in the West Bank with her grandmother and family in El Bireh. Her parents immigrated to the US following the war of 1967. Sarsour was a young mother in Brooklyn at the time of the Sept. 11^th attacks on the World Trade Center. She recounts her experience and the experience of her Muslim community following this terrorist attack.  

            This is an easy read, and a great opportunity to look at the inside life of a Palestinian-American family, their culture, and what it was like for the Muslim community in the aftermath of 9/11. It helped me feel how closely related we Jews are to our Palestinian cousins in our pursuit of compassion and justice, our love of family and community, our faith, and the consequences of anti-Palestinian racism.