12 | JUNE 13 • 2024
detail the largest forced migration in
human history.
There are constant sounds of narra-
tors throughout the museum, sometimes
from actual former slaves describing the
cruelty of their day-to-day existence.
Their descriptions are heart-wrenching.
Hearing former slaves explain how an
auctioneer would force them to display
their teeth and gums to potential buyers
gives a vivid glimpse into the unimag-
inable dehumanization of the slavery
era.
After the tour, the group gathered at
the ADL’s office for lunch and a much-
needed debrief of the students’ reactions
to both museums. The two-hour discus-
sion was extraordinarily candid and, for
many, cathartic.
SHARING EACH OTHER’S PAIN
Many of the African American students
said that while they had a general idea
about the Holocaust, they were never
exposed to the realities of the concentra-
tion camps. Many of the Jewish students
reported that they were “blown away” by
the “historical parallels” between Blacks
and Jews. All the students remarked that
the experience opened their eyes to the
need for a deeper education of each oth-
er’s history.
The discussion led to present-day
challenges in the relationship. Blacks
and Jews, everyone agreed, will have
areas of disagreements — sometimes
sharp ones — but only by having the
difficult conversations can real under-
standing take place and lasting relation-
ships emerge.
As Aniyah Hinds, a senior at Cass
Tech bound for the University of
Michigan next fall, said, “The whole
experience was mind-opening. It really
exposes you to a different perspec-
tive from someone else’s eyes. It really
helped me to step out of my own bubble
and engage with other people.”
It had been a fast-paced and unfor-
gettable trip. Friendships had been
formed, and 28 students (22 of whom
made the trip) had gotten crash cours-
es on issues vital to Black and Jewish
unity. The experience demonstrated to
the Coalition that there are young peo-
ple in Metropolitan Detroit — future
leaders — who understand that they
share a common legacy and need to
come together to combat hate. As the
Coalition likes to point out, Dr. King
would say: “We may have come in dif-
ferent ships, but we’re all in the same
boat now.”
Going forward, given the success of
the pilot year, the Leadership Academy
will be a centerpiece of the Coalition for
Black and Jewish Unity. The Coalition,
now in its 6th year, is a partnership
between the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit (see page 14), the
Council of Baptist Pastors of Detroit and
Vicinity, the Anti-Defamation League,
the Urban League and the NAACP-
Michigan Conference. The Coalition
engages in regular initiatives to promote
solidarity and speaks out against racism
and antisemitism, including a MLK
Day service, a “Freedom Passover
Seder” (hosted twice at the governor’s
residence), Black History Month
commemorations, a trip to civil rights
sights in the South, and many other
educational and social activities.
The Coalition often refers to an old
African proverb to describe its guiding
principle: “If you want to go fast, go
alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
The students of the Leadership
Academy, after months of learning
about the shared struggles of Blacks
and Jews and the importance of jointly
meeting the challenges ahead, now have
a better appreciation of the wisdom of
that proverb.
Mark Jacobs is the co-founder and co-director of
the Coalition for Black and Jewish Unity.
OUR COMMUNITY
COVER STORY
continued from page 11
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: Leadership
Academy faculty: Rev. Dr. DeeDee M.
Coleman, Rev. Dr. Robyn D. Moore,
Daniel Bucksbaum, Mark Jacobs, Tamara
Lopes, Rev. C.J. Sampson, Rev. Aramis D.
Hinds and Carolyn Normandin (missing
are Rabbi Marla Hornsten, Rabbi Asher
Lopatin and Rev. Kenneth J. Flowers).