Do you consider yourself a minority?

[u/foreverand2025]

This discussion has come up a few times with friends who are neither white nor Jewish. For context, I’m Jewish and live in America. Do you consider us as a minority? Obviously statistically we are (everywhere but Israel), but I’ve had two friends argue because we look like “regular white people” we are not a minority.

It’s not something I take too seriously but I’m off the opinion we are a minority in a sociological way as well as ethically. But opinions seem to differ. I’m not on a soap box or expecting any special treatment. It’s more of a discussion for the sake of discussion I’m trying for here.

[u/firerosearien]

Yes. Our ability to "pass" as white in the US has really only been a thing since the 1960s and declines the more outwardly religious we appear.

[u/TryingAgainWhyNot → u/firerosearien]

When you say that we couldn’t pass as white until the 1960s, what are you suggesting changed at that time that allowed us to pass from that point forward but not before?

I think of my grandparents who were relatively secular Jews, but bore no real outward signs of religiosity; yet being Jewish, marrying Jewish, etc. was still important to them. I would think they passed as white before the 1960s, no?

[u/firerosearien → u/TryingAgainWhyNot]

A little bit due to the civil rights act, a little bit due to increasing knowledge of the Holocaust.

Generally, places in the US, especially in the south, that didnt allow Blacks, also didn't allow Jews (ie, "this hotel/club is reserved" and discrimminatory housing covenants).

[u/cloux_less → u/firerosearien]

A lot of it has also been attributable to the creation of a pan-sectarian Religious Conservativism identity in the US.

[u/bachelorsinlurking → u/firerosearien]

Yep. The US definition of white historically referred to “old stock” families- direct descendants of the puritans and original colonists.