AUTHOR TALK | Sarah Hurwitz, “As a Jew: Reclaiming Our Story”

An urgent exploration of how antisemitism has shaped Jewish identity and how Jews can reclaim their tradition, by the celebrated White House head speechwriter and author of the widely acclaimed “Here All Along.” In conversation with Amy Lavin, SJCC CEO.  

At 36, Sarah Hurwitz was a typical lapsed Jew. On a whim, she attended an introduction to Judaism class and was astonished by what she discovered: thousands of years of wisdom from her ancestors about what it means to be human. That class sparked a journey of discovery that transformed her life. 
 
​Years later, as Hurwitz wrestled with what it means to be Jewish at a time of rising antisemitism, she wondered: Where had the Judaism she discovered as an adult been all her life? Why hadn’t she seen the beauty and depth of her tradition in those dull synagogue services and Hebrew school classes? And why had her Jewish identity consisted of a series of caveats and apologies? 
 
Seeking answers, she went back through time to discover how hateful myths about Jewish power, depravity, and conspiracy have worn a neural groove deep into the world’s psyche, shaping not just how others think about Jews, but how Jews think about themselves. 
 
In “As a Jew,” Hurwitz documents her quest to take back her Jewish identity: how she stripped away the layers of antisemitic lies and unearthed the treasures of Jewish tradition. With antisemitism raging worldwide, Hurwitz’s defiant account of reclaiming the Jewish story and learning to live as a Jew, without apology, has never been timelier or more necessary.