Planned by: Michelle Rubinstein (El Al), Elana Loeb (El Al), Adam Marx (Mar-Win), and Zach Stanton-Savitz (SiWi)
6:30 PM- 6:45 PM: El Al, Mar-Win, and SiWi arrive and “chill like cholos” (aka just hang out).
6:45 PM- 7:10 PM: Icebreaker. Split into 2 groups and share your name/school/grade/ and if you were a Mexican food what would you be and WHY?
7:10 PM- 7:30 PM: Cholo Rap Program. Split everyone into groups of ~5-6 people. Give each group 3 words related to Mexico/Spanish words/Hispanic food. Give groups 10 minutes to get to know each other and create a "cholo rap" including those 3 words. Have everyone present afterwards!
7:30 PM- 7:45 PM: Havdallah and cheers.
7:45 PM- 8:00 PM: Salsa and Guacamole Chef Program! Split everyone into 2 groups. 1 group will make salsa, and the other group will make guacamole. Give each group a slip of paper with the directions and ingredients. Have all the ingredients already chopped into bowls. Give 1 large bowl and spoons for each group to mix all the ingredients together.
8:00 PM- 8:30 PM: Burrito Bar Dinner. Ask people to bring plates, cups, drinks, and napkins. Prepare rice, black beans, shredded cheese, and serve the guacamole and salsa from the last program.
8:30 PM- 9:00 PM: Girls and guys will sit on opposite sides of each other. Each “pair” (guy and girl sitting across from each other). They will then discuss a question that will be asked to the group related to interracial marriage and what Judaism has to say about it. After about a minute, the guys will move down 1 person and the cycle will continue.
Discussion Questions: Introduce yourself with name, chapter, and two random facts about yourself. What has been your opinion on interfaith marriages? A Jewish perspective: Question: I was explaining to a non-Jewish work colleague that I only date Jewish men, because I would not marry a non-Jew. He accused me of being racist. I was caught on the spot and had nothing to say. How would you respond to this accusation? Answer: If insisting that you will only date Jews makes you racist, does insisting that you will only date men make you sexist? You are certainly discriminating, but is this discrimination bad?
Do you think this discrimination is bad? Why or why not? Do you personally look for only one type of person? What kind and why?
What Judaism says Traditional Judaism does not permit interfaith marriages. The Torah states that the children of such marriages would be lost to Judaism (Deut. 7:3-4), and experience has shown the truth of this passage all too well. The 2000 National Jewish Population Survey found that only a third of interfaith couples raise their children Jewish, despite increasing efforts in the Reform and Conservative communities to welcome interfaith couples. The torah says: "Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly." How do you feel about interfaith marriages? Would it bother you if most Jews ended up married to goys and the religion got somewhat lost? Why or why not? Do you find this to be rude of G-d in a way? How so or why not? What do you think it means that we must only obey G-d and only marry people who do the same?
The opposite perspective Say you meet someone of a different faith and fall in love. Your parents don't approve of your decision. Would you get married? Would this change if your parents did approve? Do you think dating non-Jews now, as teens, will in any way effect us when we grow older? How? What bothers you about the Jewish perspective on interfaith marriages? What bothers you about interfaith marriages? What's something you heard from someone else that you disagreed with, strongly agreed with, or just found interesting? Has your opinion changed about interfaith marriages at all since the beginning of the program, by hearing others' ideas?
9:00 PM- 9:45 PM: Piñata Secret Program. Pass out index cards and markers to everyone. Everyone has a few minutes to write down on the card something that they’re ashamed of, embarrassed of, or something that’s a secret and you wouldn’t want other people knowing it was your secret. Write down 1 thing before index card; give out more index cards if people want to write down more than 1 thing. Then, fold up all the index cards and stuff them into a piñata (buy from a party store). Each person will then get a chance to beat the piñata until the candy and secrets fall out. Everyone will then read the secrets. Discuss this program while everyone is eating candy. Talk about how BBYO is a safe environment in which people are comfortable with being who they are and sharing personal things about themselves without being afraid, etc.
9:45 PM- 10:05 PM: Dia de los Muertes Mask Program. Briefly explain the highly celebrated Mexican holiday- Dia de los Muertes (Day of the Dead). Be sure to explain that it is a happy and festive celebration of death, and that often masks are made to accompany the holiday. Get a bunch of construction paper, markers, scissors, and art supplies. Pass out the paper and have everyone make their own Day of the Dead masks!
10:05 PM- 10:30 PM: Clean up, hang out, and then leave.
Supplies list:
-Large stack of construction paper (for people to write their cholo raps, and to make masks) -Ingredients for Salsa -Ingredients for Guacamole -Bowls -Plates, cups, drinks, and napkins -Rice, black beans, and shredded cheese -Tortillas -Piñata -Candy to fill the piñata