The audience in this Princeton Auditorium appeared eerily similar to a high school lunchroom. Those who learned of the event through the Black Student Union listserv sat stage right. Those who saw posters at Hillel sat stage left. Those age 55+ who read about the event in the local Jewish newspaper planted themselves front and center, having arrived half-an-hour early for the privilege).
Rain Pryor, actress, comedian, singer and writer, stood undaunted in front of the diverse, albeit compartmentalized, crowd of 300. As the daughter of black comedian Richard Pryor and a Jewish mother, Rain Pryor has the unique ability to relate to everyone in such an audience through her autobiographical show, “Fried Chicken and Latkes.”
Assisted by no props other than her talent, Pryor morphed effortlessly into the people of her life. Black or Jewish, young or old, everyone in the auditorium encountered a character with whom they could relate. And everyone faced stereotypes, sometimes unsure whether to laugh, fidget uncomfortably in their seats, or do some combination of both.
Pryor’s honest show planted the seeds for an honest dialogue the following day. Forty students from a variety of backgrounds discussed the intersections of black and Jewish cultures over omelets and lox. The conversation quickly diverted away from the abstract notion of how these two groups relate to each other and got personal. Students compared their minority experiences at an Ivy League institution, addressing everything from the truths behind stereotypes and white-skin privilege to controversial ideas of genetic racial predisposition for particular traits.
Both sources of pride and grievances about the two communities were laid out on the table. Passions rose when students began struggling with how deeply they internalize their respective collective histories of repression. Interestingly, opinions were not determined by group affiliation, but rather by individual perspective. One black student spoke of the experience of slavery in a first-person narrative only to be chided by a black peer for wallowing in the past. Both were stunned to learn about the Jewish tradition at Passover of reading our modern day selves into the ancient Exodus story.
Some sitting around the table had their worldviews challenged as they listened to how differently their peers channeled similar historical experiences. But all those who came to the performance or brunch walked away with something, be it a laugh, a new acquaintance, or (fried) food for thought.
