Kimberly Pasternack just started her senior year at Desert Mountain High School in Scottsdale. She’s already thinking about colleges next year, specifically on the East Coast. With classes, friends and the myriad volunteer work she does, one could say her plate is pretty full. Yet, Pasternack recently found time to contribute even more to her community.
In late May, she became the youth leader for Arizona Jews for Justice’s (AJJ) new teen fellowship program, as well as an AJJ intern. This is the first time AJJ has put together an all-teen fellowship cohort.
Nine teenagers, all Jewish high school seniors from Phoenix and Scottsdale, will be learning about social justice issues, strengthening Jewish identity with Torah studying and addressing antisemitism among their fellow teens.
“Sometimes kids say things or tell jokes and they don’t even realize what it means, and that’s something we can help with,” Pasternack said. “I haven’t been able to take action yet, but I know that teens respond better to other teens and they will be more likely to listen to us than an adult who shares the same information.”
Kimberly Pasternack is the youth leader for AJJ’s teen fellowship.
Citing a study published in Psychological Science, Pasternack said she and the other fellows started talking about the big impact they could have on raising awareness of antisemitism among their peers during an early August dinner, where they met for the first time.
Eden and Lauren Brodsky, Rena Etzioni, Garric Gordon, Ayelet Jaffee, Saturn Klein, David Sypes and Sophia Yudell are the other eight members of the cohort.
“I have been lucky not to have experienced antisemitism directly but I have seen stuff like swastikas on school desks, and seeing that at my Scottsdale school was surprising. I hope to be able to teach my peers about it,” Pasternack said.
She’s heard firsthand accounts from other people, including her parents, and knows what to look for.
“I was talking to some kids today about it and they don’t really understand how deep antisemitism goes. They say, ‘You look white and you aren’t discriminated against.
Is it really as big a deal as racism or xenophobia?’” she said.
As someone who believes deeply in promoting racial justice, Pasternack takes comments like these to heart. Her response is direct without being defensive.
“We don’t need to take attention from any group that experiences disparities but we should increase it for other groups and antisemitism gets less attention. That doesn’t mean racism and xenophobia should be addressed less, only that antisemitism should be addressed more,” she said.
The AJJ fellowship is designed to elevate the teens’ leadership potential and combat antisemitism while simultaneously developing strong Jewish ethics.
“We want them to be proudly Jewish and proudly active in spaces that they are helping make safe for Jews,” said Eddie Chavez Calderon, AJJ campaign director.
“We’ve had teens as volunteers and interns, but no structure dedicated to them before this, and we wanted to change that with this fellowship and focus on them. People think teens can’t make an impact due to their youth, but they have a unique opportunity to make a difference — they have the power, the willingness and frankly, the energy,” he said.
The fellows will meet every month for two hours. During their first official meeting on Sept. 3, they will begin with some Torah learning led by AJJ founder Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz and then jump right into discussing antisemitism — what it is and how to combat it.
Calderon plans to talk about issues such as economic justice, while pointing out how hateful stereotypes about Jews and money have been used to blame Jewish people for the plight of the poor and dispossessed.
Each meeting will offer education, hands-on experiences with direct advocacy and a grounding in Jewish ethics.
Pasternak, who said her Jewish identity isn’t fully developed yet, likes the religious aspect of the fellowship. Her mother is Reform and her father is Orthodox; she belongs to and became a bat mitzvah at the Reform Congregation Beth Israel in Scottsdale but she attends High Holiday services with her father at Ahavas Torah, an Orthodox synagogue, also in Scottsdale.
“It’s integral to everyone’s Jewish learning to be in the midst of diversity,” she said.
Pasternack is also part of the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix (CJP) Youth Philanthropy Board, where she first learned of the fellowship. Andrea Cohen, director of youth philanthropy at CJP, called Pasternack “a strong leader with a passion for helping others.”
The Youth Philanthropy Board members are asked to investigate grant applications having to do with youth programs and though several had to do with addressing antisemitism, most did so in an indirect way. AJJ’s proposal to focus directly on antisemitism with the help of teens was the kind of thing she was hoping to see.
“I was looking at it and realized it’s just the kind of thing we were looking for. Plus, I decided I needed to apply for it myself,” she said.
The day Pasternack turned in her application to Calderon, she felt at home with the organization. She started helping out right away — buying goods for AJJ to hand out to those in need and doing media graphics and clerical work. She wasn’t content to wait a few months until her fellowship officially began.
“I strive to take part in as much social justice as possible; I’ve lobbied for DACA, pursued medical advocacy and had hands-on experience in multiple nonprofits,” she said.
Now, she’s prepared to turn her focus to antisemitism more fully.
“It’s a problem that won’t be fixed unless we speak up,” she said. JN
To learn more, visit arizonajewsforjustice.org.
Jewish News is published by the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix, a component of the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix.
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