I'm Not Jewish!

Despite my Italian ancestry, I often get mistaken for being Jewish. I have accepted this and am fine with it. I have am bespectacled and have dark, wavy hair. I also am a bit on the neurotic side, which is an attribute many associate with being Jewish. This is all good and well. I like Jews and I have many Jewish friends. I'm a big fan of lox and bagels and other Jewish delicacies as well.

However, I feel that whenever Hasidic and Orthodox Jews look at me, they are disgusted. After all, Hasidic and Orthodox Jews detest Reform Jews and I look like a Reform. Just last week, I was in line at the bank and an Orthodox Jew was behind me and I could feel the hatred. I wanted to explain to him that I am, in fact, Italian, but not a practicing Catholic.

For a while in college (while attending a Jesuit university no less), I considered converting to Judaism just to avoid the constant confusion. Even when people hear my last name, they are still not convinced of my non-Semitic background. For the record, my last name is 10 letters long and ends in a vowel. There is no mistaking it for being Hebrew.

There is a fine line between Jews and Italians. They both are somewhat loud, very emotional, a little on the thrifty side and our mothers dote on us in the same manner. We even have similar physical characteristics. It is not easy to distinguish between us sometimes, but all I ask is that if you are Orthodox or Hasidic, do not judge me for not being like you. I was not born into the culture and would not be accepted no matter what.