Dear Friends:

Many of you know me as Hellenic (“Greek”), which is my matrilineal tribal lineage, but I am also a proud (agnostic, patrilineal) Jew.

I’m also a proud participant in the “I’M THAT JEW” campaign, an inspiring celebration of Jewish pride founded by Eitan Chitayat (@eitanchitayat_words). I am deeply honored—and humbled—to find myself in the company of some truly extraordinary Jews. I’m also thrilled that he chose to share my “WE ARE NATURE, WE ARE WILDLIFE” quote (from Infinite Perception: The Role of Psychedelics in Global Transformation).

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, Eitan, for including me.

“We’re tired of being hated and singled out as a people it’s OK to hate,” Eitan says. “But we’ll never stop fighting it and celebrating who we are.”

Over the years, I have had the great privilege of supporting many of your personal healing journeys. Sharing my Jewish heritage is essential to my own Ancestor Medicine healing process.

Ancestral trauma is real, and like many (most) Jews worldwide, my life changed on October 7th.

On my sweet 96-year-old Jewish father’s side, my ancestors were survivors of sadistic genocidal pogroms. Like most diaspora Jews, I grew up hearing nightmarish and gruesome stories about those who were not so fortunate.

My ancestors eventually found relative safety in the United States—relative because at that time, antisemitism was pervasive and extreme. I find it profoundly sad that these kind, talented, ethical, generous people who contributed greatly to their communities in real-world ways felt the need to hide their identity.

My paternal grandmother’s ancestors were en route to New York from Austria when their ship ran into trouble and they landed in the Carolinas just before the Civil War. They took one look around and decided to “pass” as German. They hid their identity to avoid violent persecution, a type of cultural torture where you are privy to openly racist conversations and have to hide your disappointment, hurt—and rage. As a Greek-presenting Jew, I’ve had that experience myself.

When my father’s father asked for my father’s mother’s hand in marriage, the family agreed—but on the condition that he change his surname from Greenberg, to Greene. My father had no idea that he was Jewish until he went to get his first passport, which required a copy of his birth certificate.

Memories of my beloved grandparents and other close Jewish family members and friends who have passed are a blessing. I am grateful they are not alive today to witness antisemitism—this ugly, ancient, obsessive, shape-shifting form of racism—rising again, this time with the unprecedented power of 24/7 global digital connectivity and radical Islam combined.

I am sorry that sharing this will provoke attacks from Jew-haters and cause some followers to leave, but silence is complicity, and I will not hide as my ancestors did. Fueled by radical Islam’s quest for global domination, this wave of openly declared Jew-hate is not only heartbreaking—it has serious real-world consequences, personally and professionally, individually and as a collective. Not stepping up and speaking out is a privilege. WE HAVE NO CHOICE.

Non-Jewish Allies: PLEASE CHECK IN WITH YOUR JEWISH FRIENDS. We are hurting, and we need your support. Jew-hate and mob culture should not be tolerated, and your voices matter.

Please FOLLOW the #imthatjew hashtag.

Thank you. I love you.

– Zoe Helene, Founder, Cosmic Sister

I’m That Jew is a Jewish advocacy nonprofit media project under the Am Yisrael Foundation a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

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#imthatjew