Why Mizrahi Jews are fighting erasure in New York City
Fourteen Sephardi and Mizrahi organizations delivered a letter to the editors of the New York magazine on Aug. 25. The letter was coordinated by JIMENA, a California-based organization that campaigns to raise awareness of the rights of Jews driven from the Middle East and North Africa.It was drafted in protest at the erasure of Jewish establishments in the magazine’s 31-page issue, splashed with the front-page headline, “Habibi City.” It deplored the fact that the publication had deliberately left out Middle Eastern Jewish restaurants from New York’s SWANA cultural scene.SWANA (not to be confused with the Solid Waste Association of North America) is an abbreviation for South West Asia and North Africa, a newly minted term to avoid using the “colonial and Eurocentric” expression “Middle East.”The magazine erased Jewish restaurants, but the culture of a rich tapestry of non-Arab Middle Eastern peoples—Christians, Armenians, Kurds, Yazidis, Druze, Amazigh, Baha’is, Zoroastrians—was also nowhere…
Fourteen Sephardi and Mizrahi organizations, coordinated by JIMENA, sent a letter to New York magazine on August 25, protesting the exclusion of Jewish establishments from its "Habibi City" issue. The article, which focused on New York's SWANA (South West Asia and North Africa) cultural scene, omitted Middle Eastern Jewish restaurants and other non-Arab Middle Eastern cultures, equating SWANA with a specific, anti-Zionist Muslim identity. The letter stated, "Include us as we are," challenging the magazine's portrayal of Jews only as "Arab Jews" who disavow Zionism.
- The article also criticized the magazine for linking the growth of SWANA culture to the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, proclaiming, "Out of resistance, a cultural ecosystem started to bloom."
- This erasure of Mizrahi Jewish culture, including their historical ties to Middle Eastern foods, is part of a broader trend also seen in London, where Time Out London initially excluded Israeli restaurants from its listings.
- Following the backlash, New York magazine's editor-in-chief, David Haskell, agreed to meet with the signatories and ensure future coverage reflects "the multiple perspectives of the region."
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