Black Jewish History for Black History Month | CAEF Special Bulletin, Feb 19, 2026
- CAEF
- 13 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Jews Come in All Colours
February is Black History Month in Canada. Jews and non Jews need facts-Jews are diverse racially, ethnically, spiritually, but constitute a people with a land, language, history, faith, customs, culture and shared values.
The Jewish Independent published a report with stats on Canadian Jews
Read excerpts about the shrinking Jewish Canadian population.
“The 2021 census also asked about ethnic or cultural origin. In this instance, the number of people choosing Jewish as their ethnic or cultural origin (or one of several) decreased from 2011 to 2021, from 309,650 to 282,015, though the number increased in British Columbia, from 31,865 in 2011 to 34,395 a decade later.
More than half of Canadian Jews live in Ontario, home to 196,100 Jews, while an additional quarter (84,530) live in Quebec. British Columbia’s 26,845 Jews are 8% of the national Jewish population. Other provinces with significant Jewish populations are Alberta, with 11,565 Jews, and Manitoba, with 11,390. Smaller Jewish communities exist in Nova Scotia, with 2,195 Jews, Saskatchewan, with 1,105 Jews, and New Brunswick, where 1,000 people listed their religion as Jewish.
In Canada, approximately 12,000 Jews (3.6%) identify as a visible minority, including 2,615 Black Jews, 1,505 Latin American Jews, 1,270 South Asian Jews and 1,155 Chinese Jews. Those numbers in British Columbia are 1,425 overall, including 235 Latin American Jews, 200 Black Jews, 170 Chinese Jews and 150 South Asian Jews.”
Read about Canada’s first Black Jew, as told by his son to Myron Love for Canadian Jewish News, April 1, 2015.
My Jewish Learning, a treasure trove of information:
The 20 Black Jews that You Should Know
..” Black Jews have lived and made history in the United States and Canada since the 17th century. According to W.E B. Du Bois’ A Chronicle of Race Relations, the first Jewish resident of New England was Sollomon, a Black Jew who arrived in New England in 1668.”
Read blog by Ilana Kaufman, CEO of the Jews of Color Initiative in The Times of Israel, January 12, 2025.
Read Statement from Bill Tinglin, American Holocaust educator and activist for Black-Jewish relations, Chair, CBL Publishing.
The purpose of Black History Month is to educate, to correct historical omissions, and to recognize that the progress of the United States has been shaped by the courage and contributions of Black Americans.
That progress was not achieved alone.
During the Civil Rights Movement, African American and Jewish communities stood together in the fight for equality and human dignity. Rabbis marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma.
Coalition for Jewish Values Presents Pastor Dumasani Washington
In conversation with Rabbi Yaakov Menken on Black-Jewish relations
