CLEVELAND — Matt Fieldman is a northeast Ohio Jewish Community leader who co-founded the Rekindle Fellowship as a way to improve local African American, Jewish relations, at a time when concerns over antisemitism have been making headlines across the nation.
Fieldman told News 5 that while antisemitic incidents involving Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving, and entertainment star Kayne West are regrettable, he's looking bigger picture, helping to create the Rekindle Fellowship.
Irving issued a public apology on Nov. 4 after the Brooklyn Nets suspended him for at least five game without pay for a social media post about a book and movie that featured anti-Jewish messages.
Last month, Kanye West had his endorsement deal with Adidas dropped after he made antisemitic statements.
Fieldman said the Rekindle Fellowship is a way to bring leaders from both the Cleveland African American and Jewish communities together.
“For Irving, it’s great to see that he’s finally apologized, I feel bad that he had to be suspended to make that happen," Fieldman said. "But it’s nice to see that he’s realized that he made a mistake, and that’s the first step toward reforming.”
Fieldman also acknowledged the problem in rising statistics.
"In any minority community, we’re seeing rising racism and rising anti-semitism. So yes, this is out there, it’s really something we have to address as a nation," Fieldman added.
However, building community connections is the first step to tackling the problem at hand.
“Rekindle will help create more understanding and more connections between the two communities. They live right next to each other, yet they really don’t work together all that often," he said.
Rekindle hosted a breakfast meeting on Oct. 31 to discuss Cleveland policing reform and how to improve the justice system in northeast Ohio.
Rekindle graduate Jamil Sanders believes the relatively new program is already breaking down barriers between the local Black and Jewish communities.
“There’s not a lot of interaction, especially in northeast Ohio with it being such a strong footprint," Sanders said. “How can you not talk about those similarities, how can you not talk about how can we collaborate. We need to break down the barrier of conversation, really understand this is a safe space.”
Fieldman said the Rekindle Fellowship will be hosting aDec. 17 concert at Cleveland's Grog Shop,featuring Orthodox Jewish rapper Nissim Black. Fieldman said it easy for members of the Black and Jewish communities to sign-up and get involved with the Rekindle Fellowship.
“So the program is three meetings of four hours each for a total of 12-hours together, and the purpose is to create dialogue, conversations and connections," Fieldman said. We create action teams to take on real projects that will make Cleveland better place."
Meanwhile, Sanders told News 5 the program is being examined by several other U.S. cities, and he believes it's more proof that Cleveland continues to be a template for the rest of the nation.
“I think it’s easy to use comparisons about how different we are versus how similar we are," Sanders said. "We need to find those similarities, find those connectivity points."
“This program really can transform cities all across America, because we all want to see America be great.”
