One of the most enjoyable parts of my work on behalf of Global Jewry is the opportunity to speak every day with smart and passionate people all over the world who want to help us succeed.
Some are friends with whom I am reconnecting after not having spoken in years, and others are folks I am meeting for the first time. In both cases, the conversations are always friendly, encouraging, energizing, and informative.
One recurring theme of my calls this week raised the question of whether we should continue to use the word “peoplehood” in our communications about Global Jewry. For some, the term is shorthand for a concept they grasp immediately. For others, however, it is confusing at best and completely unrelatable at worst. It also raises questions about uniformity (as opposed to unity) and who should be counted as part of the Jewish people, a divisive issue we should vigorously try to avoid.
We will be much better off, according to several people I heard from this week, speaking about “family” (mishpacha in Hebrew) rather than “peoplehood.” The individuals I spoke with explained to me that people are very familiar with how families work in terms of their construction (close and distant relatives by blood, marriage, etc.), their relationships (also close and distant, loving, intolerant, etc.), and their interactions (agreements, disagreements, changing priorities, etc.). Talking about ourselves as one big family, it was suggested, is a more useful approach.
I think their advice is well worth heeding, especially as we continue to revamp the content of the Global Jewry website. We are keenly aware that you only have one chance to make a good first impression, and it is imperative that what people see on their inaugural visit to our site is both easily accessible and immediately relatable. We want to create a community where every member of the Jewish family feels welcome, has a sense of belonging, and appreciates all that unites us.
To that end, we are working with David Sebo, the founder and chief designer of Ubisep Design, and Andrew Exler, Founder & Chief Strategist of Andrew Exler Marketing, to update our logo, enhance our website and increase our social media presence. They make a great team and we are very excited about the preliminary ideas they have shared with us. We also appreciate their support of our desire to focus on building media outlets that are focused first on publicizing and amplifying the work of our advisory board members and organizational partners, and only then turning to promote our own brand.
And, in the meantime, we invite you to share your thoughts about the best way to improve our communications. There are a lot of great minds in the Jewish world with extensive strategic, marketing and technical expertise, and we would welcome introductions to those you think are the best and brightest, leaders who share our passion for securing a bright future.
We also want to encourage you to keep sharing your connection to Global Jewry on your social media platforms. Almost every announcement posted by members of our advisory board about their support for GJ generates significant online engagement, the result of which is more and more people learning about us and the important work we are doing.
As always, thanks for your continued support and may we see a return of the hostages very soon.
Shabbat Shalom,
