UF Hillel’s Comments (group member since May 17, 2018)

UF Hillel’s comments from the UF Hillel group.

1. Jennifer struggles with the fact that her grandmother lived with a Nazi and simply ignored the atrocities he committed. How does Jennifer’s newfound attitude affect her relationship with her grandmother? From this shift in perspective, it is possible to love, but not like someone?
2. Jennifer realizes that Amon Goeth was not just a fictional character in Schindler's List, but a real person, in fact, he was her relative. How have “skeletons in your closet” affected you and/or changed your perspective of the world?
3. The title of this book is provocative; what was your initial reaction to the title? How did the memoir change the way you think about the Holocaust?

1. As Jews in America, we are often marginalized. How is marginalization as a White Jew different from those who don’t get to hide their marginalized identity (race, ethnicity, citizenship status)?

2. Adichie notes a multitude of language nuances, such as differentiating between “poor blacks and whites” and “poor blacks and poor whites.” A specific nuance is the difference between African-American and American-African. How does the nuance of African-American and American-African parallel American Jew and Jewish-American?

3. Aunty Uju’s relationship with the general was based on a single woman trying to survive. With the #MeToo movement, there have been a plethora of stories from women who were promised career advancements. How does the Aunty Uju’s relationship parallel many of the stories of relationships that are prevalent right now?

1. There are numerous parallels between Jewish and African American culture. What are the parallels you noticed throughout the book?

2. Is the concept of Zion strictly Jewish or can it apply to any individual striving to find home?

3. Racial and religious intolerance affect every character in Marching to Zion. In what ways do these issues similarly plague society today? What progress has been made since the era of Marching to Zion?

1. How has your knowledge—or lack thereof—about your family background shaped your own self-image?

2. "It was in her sense of education, more than any other, that Mommy conveyed her Jewishness to us." In what ways do Jewish values instill the importance of education?

3. James McBride calls himself 'a black man'. Given that he has a white mother, does he have a choice about this identity? Why or why not?

4. Do we as individuals have a choice in how we identify ourselves?