how many times were you asked if you were jewish today?

jgregorie

for me seven
fucking seven times on my 5 block walk to the park for my run.

and there were these little kids standing in the bike lane trying to flag people down as they ran.

im seriously thinking about getting a hat made online that says "no im not fucking jewish"

oh new york you find new ways to annoy the shit out of me on a daily basis

okay im better now

dapearl9

Last year on the Jewish New Year I was running to the park and by the museum a group of about 3 Hasidim hanging around. With my curly hair I get the Jewish question all the time and I could see them scoping me out so I was getting my, "Nope, sorry" response ready (I don't know why I apologize, but whatever). And sure enough one of them asks me, "Excuse me, are you Jewish" and before I can even say anything one of his friends looks at the questioneer with disdain and says, "C'mon [name], really? He's running."

It kept me amused for the rest of my run.

whynot_31

I was asked twice, but look at the events much differently.

First time, the man approached me and was about to ask, but I preempted him and stated "No, but Happy New Year". He responded back "I was going to ask you if you were a wonderful person". I replied "Thanks" and went down the steps to Eastern Parkway Station...

Second time, Orthodox man begins his approach. I smile and shake my head, "no" before he asks. I then ask him "are you?". He says "am I what?" ...I respond "Jewish?". He laughs, rolls his eyes, and says "yes", and I say "Happy New Year".

...oh new york, I find new ways to amuse myself at you everyday.

karl the druid

i've been told i don't look druish

sneakyonstmarks

Shana Tova, i know that there are many self hating Jews out there, i am not one of them. Proud to be one of the tribe, so happy Fucking New year, the best is yet to come and for all of you non Jews, well i wish you all the same..
Sneaky!!

fjord

Happy New Year to all as well.

So I was asked 4 times. Once leaving the 2,3 at Eastern Parkway/Brooklyn Museum, and 3 times while cycling in the park. One dude sorta jumped right in my path, "excuse me, sir!" and I was like "dude, i am climbing a hill right now!"

brooklynpotter

i was asked once: when i hit south slope while walking back from sunset park. two very young--like maybe 20--hasidic guys (one with a prayer book, one with a shofar) walked by, looked at the red curly hair, doubled back to ask.

i always tell them i'm not, then wish them a happy holiday. it's far easier even though i am (though ethnically, atheist non-practicing anything), because i don't feel like having to turn down prayers, invites, etc... but at least these two were friendly. it makes me nuts when they're not

stewart

Three.
I grew up in Philadelphia where there's like one Jew for every 5 million Catholics. And I think they're all Conservative. Which is a long way around way of saying: Why are they asking?

brooklynpotter

it's rosh hashanah, and they want you to hear the prayers and the blowing of the shofar (a ram's horn). i believe (and i could be wrong) that hearing the horn is a necessity.

it's the lubavitch hasidim who are approaching you, the most lenient of all hasidim and the only ones who prosletize (sp?). they're the ones who run chabad.

underhill_mt

Yeah, brooklynpotter is right. It's the Lubuvitch crew that go out and ask if folks are jewish. They're the charismatic lenient (so to speak) hasidim who strive to encourage all jews to come back to the fold and embrace the teachings of the rebbe.

I am a jew, technically speaking, but I always say, "No, but Shana Tova and have a beautiful day." This year I've been met with a lot of smiles and enthusiastic "You, too!"s unlike most years when as soon as I say no I get a cold sholder and a turned back. This morning at the Grand Army Plaza 2/3 stop the man from yesterday morning recognized me and said "I hope today is more beautiful than yesterday for you!" It's so refreshing to not be immediately ignored when I (lie) say I'm not jewish.

Happy New Year all!

apollonia666

I always feel kinda flattered when I get asked, for some reason. Your response is great, Underhill_MT!

poppy13

stupid question here... is this a new thing?

underhill_mt

apollonia666 wrote: I always feel kinda flattered when I get asked, for some reason. Your response is great, Underhill_MT!

Thanks! I prefer being asked if I'm jewish to being asked if I have "a minute for the environment" or the like. Invariably they always want money... the Lubavitch guys just want your soul!

sterling2000

I picked up a great standard response that is a generic enough to use whether it is Jewish guys or one of those pro-insert-cause clipboard folks all over Manhattan:

Question: "Excuse me sir, are you Jewish?"

Question: "Hi, there! Do you have a few minutes for gay rights?"

Question: "Have a few seconds for the environment today?"

Answer: "Nope, but I'm a big fan."

(usually elicits a response of brief confusion before they move on to the next target)

belzjm

feel free to use my stock response to the guy who hangs out on 7th avenue and has literally asked me 600 times in the last year...

him: "you jewish sir?"

me: "no, are you?"

at least i get to walk away with a smile...

sneakyonstmarks

At least they are not missionaries trying to steal away your culture and identity ..!!

flux

They asked me as well. At my place of work. I work at a hospital and they came to my office and asked me if im jewish. I told them i was and they said if i know of any other doctors who are jewish. I told them my boss is. They said that they keep on getting turned down by him and they asked me if i wanted to hear the shofar.

I said "sure...but only if you blow it right outside my bosses office". they agreed. we stood by the office as the other doctors walked by looking confused as the rabbi blew the horn. after a minute or so I heard foot steps walking toward the door and then I heard my boss slam the door shut.

I had a huge smile on my face all day.....

brooklynlager

sterling2000 wrote: Question: "Have a few seconds for the environment today?"

Answer: "Nope, but I'm a big fan."
(usually elicits a response of brief confusion before they move on to the next target)

I use to be the guy who asked that question when i first moved to NYC....fun job, could only take it for so long though.

bobbybrummel

zero this year, but i used to get it all the time when i had a hasidic sized beard. i've found all of the questioners, chabadniks, environmentalists, etc, really hate it when your response is to try and hug them. the only thing worse than a stranger badgering you for money/soul is a stranger trying to touch you.

withachaser

4x today. 3 in bk, 1 in midtown. twice yesterday. lately, i've been answering, with a warm smile to the assertive young men, 'thanks for asking! in fact, i'm lesbian.' none of them have bothered to ascertain, after that, whether or not i'm also a jew. if i'm feeling particularly ironic/friendly/sadistic/jewish, i'll follow it with "l'shana tovah, to you and yours." the reactions often keep me entertained enough to avoid being irritable with them.

lo kee

withachaser wrote: 4x today. 3 in bk, 1 in midtown. twice yesterday. lately, i've been answering, with a warm smile to the assertive young men, 'thanks for asking! in fact, i'm lesbian.' none of them have bothered to ascertain, after that, whether or not i'm also a jew. if i'm feeling particularly ironic/friendly/sadistic/jewish, i'll follow it with "l'shana tovah, to you and yours." the reactions often keep me entertained enough to avoid being irritable with them.

Lesbian lesbian or experimenting undergraduate lesbian?

withachaser

as an undergrad twenty years ago, i experimented heterosexually. when i do it now, it's probably more about disaffection or opportunism or curiosity ;-)

the invisible lines

belzjm wrote: feel free to use my stock response to the guy who hangs out on 7th avenue and has literally asked me 600 times in the last year...

him: "you jewish sir?"

me: "no, are you?"

at least i get to walk away with a smile...

I know exactly who you mean. I though maybe he couldn't see very well because he was hanging out in front of Ozzie's on 7th and Lincoln and by the time I went inside, got a coffee, and came out, he'd asked me THREE times. By the third time I just had to laugh and said, "Nope, still not Jewish."

This year I've gotten asked about 5 times. I always get hit walking from the Franklin stop to the Jewish Hospital (how appropriate). I was wearing my giant can headphones yesterday and an older guy approached and I politely said "I'm not Jewish," but he kept looking at me and smiling, so I took off my headphones to hear what he was saying to me, which was "I just wanted to say hello!" I replied by wishing him a happy New Year, but really thought "Yeah right, dude." He was chipper about it, though, so whatever. At least I didn't respond to him the way I responded to that guy in the Union Square station who wears the "Jesus Saves From Hell" t-shirt, which was by saying "Fuck off, asshole."

bkchickie

Underhill_MT wrote: Yeah, brooklynpotter is right. It's the Lubuvitch crew that go out and ask if folks are jewish. They're the charismatic lenient (so to speak) hasidim who strive to encourage all jews to come back to the fold and embrace the teachings of the rebbe.

I am a jew, technically speaking, but I always say, "No, but Shana Tova and have a beautiful day." This year I've been met with a lot of smiles and enthusiastic "You, too!"s unlike most years when as soon as I say no I get a cold sholder and a turned back. This morning at the Grand Army Plaza 2/3 stop the man from yesterday morning recognized me and said "I hope today is more beautiful than yesterday for you!" It's so refreshing to not be immediately ignored when I (lie) say I'm not jewish.

Happy New Year all!

Happy New Year, indeed!

That was a great response! I was asked once yesterday, at GAP, by a pair of men. When I said "No." the man's response was "Well, have a great day." The entire interaction took, like, 5 seconds, and I really didn't mind. They had no handouts (which I HATE, because people take those handouts and end up flinging them all over the place). It's just part of living in a diverse borough, and I wouldn't want it any other way.

Although, once on a Friday night while walking on Vanderbilt, I was asked that question. My response was the same, but the response caught me by surprise: "Great! Can you help me push my son's carriage up to the corner?" Apparently the eruv hadn't been extended to the synagogue or had broken (I couldn't quite understand). Anyway, I was happy to help.

arches

Any faith-based questioning is more than compensated for by the four joyous days when Jews and Muslims work in harmony to cancel alternate side of the street parking regulations!!

bobbybrummel

The Invisible Lines wrote: I was wearing my giant can headphones

you better be careful, man. you could get bomped on the back of the head for your sweet cans.

bobbybrummel

did no one notice that we got blagged? http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/10/things_to_say_to_jews_who_ask.html

rtraindweller

Anytime I've been asked it's always by a pair of friendly young guys. I always say "nah sorry guys". I think I say "sorry" because they're obviously trying to find people who are, and they got a swing and a miss with asking me. I don't mind being asked about religion by strangers, except by the Jesus nutjobs who bombard me after I say "nope definitely not". After that it's nothing but "do you believe in God? WHY NOT? WHY DONT YOU FEEL YOU NEED A RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST? WHY DO YOU WANT TO GO TO HELL? JESUS WILL SAVE YOU! OMFG UR GOIN 2 HELL LOLZ!". Those folks I'd like to sometimes push down the steps to the subway.

underhill_mt

bobbybrummel wrote: did no one notice that we got blagged? http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/10/things_to_say_to_jews_who_ask.html

Figures.

supreme_ian

i got asked if i was jewish once.. but then i took my hood off and showed my fitted hat and du rag and i think they realized i wasnt jewish !

my2cats

In college I was asked so much that I ended up getting involved with the local Rabbi and I got so much into it I even moved to Crown Heights and then become one of those who ask others.

It is really pushed in the schools for the students to go out and say prayers, give shabbos candles, and put on teffilin with the most amount of people possible.

That stuff does get very old and I am very happy to be out of that insulated community.