It takes only one experience of feeling unwelcome to deter Jews of color from participating in Jewish communal life, according to a new study about the needs and concerns of Santa Clara County Jews.
The study also found that people in interfaith relationships or with mixed-heritage backgrounds are often deterred because they do not feel “Jewish enough” within Jewish spheres. LGBTQ individuals, meanwhile, feel excluded in more-traditional Jewish settings. And yet another limitation is related to class differences and some people feeling out of place in upscale facilities.
“The one place [in my town] where there are family activities is the Chabad, they don’t know that I’m bi. That, and the fact that my mother converted while she was pregnant and I’m now in an interfaith marriage — I don’t feel like I can really be myself,” said one queer respondent.
Released in June by Jewish Silicon Valley and funded by Chai House Inc., the study clarifies the top concerns for Jews, identifies communal needs and prioritizes programming that respondents would like to see funded.
According to Rabbi Hugh Seid-Valencia, JSV chief community officer, the survey of 1,209 people, followed months later by a handful of focus groups, was “an opportunity for greater networking, greater transparency, greater collaboration within the region, in service of a more vibrant Jewish community in the region.”
The study is the first designed to analyze the Jewish community across all of Santa Clara County. The county is a significant one demographically. According to a 2017 study by the San Francisco-based Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund, the Jewish population in Santa Clara County was estimated at around 73,000, the largest among Bay Area counties.
Traditionally, the county’s Jewish community has been split broadly between the San Jose area and the Palo Alto/Los Altos area, but this study made a concerted effort to unify them.
“If we were looking really at the vibrancy of the Jewish community in our region, it didn’t make sense, from our perspective, to be bifurcating the county,” Seid-Valencia said Tuesday. “If people are in Sunnyvale or Mountain View, it makes sense for them to be aware of all of the offerings in the area and not just have an imaginary border between those communities.”
The study identified seven areas of primary concern in the Jewish community and addressed the specific needs of seven groups: children and teens, young adults, older adults, diverse-identity groups, the economically vulnerable, newcomers and immigrants, specifically Russian-speaking Jews and Israelis.
Although the study was conducted prior to Oct. 7, 2023, safety was still found to be a top concern, with 41% feeling that antisemitism was on the rise and 40% open to conversations about safety and security. More than 90% of Jewish organizations reported having security policies already in place.
The study also exposed human service needs within the community, including financial planning, employment assistance, caregiving support, disability-focused services, affordable housing and transportation for older adults. Some 40% of respondents reported mental health needs, with just 5% turning to the Jewish community for support.
The top two barriers to communal involvement were lack of time and lack of interest in existing programs. Wealth inequality was another major factor; 57% of respondents who faced economic hardship in the past three years said financial aid would enable more participation in Jewish organizations and programs.
“Palo Alto is an insanely wealthy area, and man, that JCC is expensive and looks expensive, and it is very much like you need quite a bit of money to be a part of it,” one survey respondent noted.
Silicon Valley is one of the richest regions in the world, with an average annual worker salary of $189,000 — almost double the average in San Francisco.
Seid-Valencia said the survey results contained few surprises but he considers that a positive outcome.
“It’s probably a good sign that we have a better sense for our community than we might have thought,” said Seid-Valencia. “There’s lots of stuff that wasn’t surprising, but having it as documented data makes it actionable in a different way and collective in a different kind of way. There’s power in that.”
With the survey results in hand, Seid-Valencia said Jewish Silicon Valley will now focus on seeking solutions to the barriers and creating plans to help Jewish organizations better serve the community. He expects this to take about three years.
“The power of having shared data, and sharing that data across the field, makes collaboration so much more attainable and possible,” said Seid-Valencia. “I think that’s a real lesson here. And just the excitement that we have around this second phase feels like a huge game changer for our community.”