Tommy Dorfman is opening up about what it's like living on the intersections of being a member of the LGBTQ+ and Jewish communities.
Ahead of Passover and as a part of popular YouTube channel Jubilee's upcoming special Recipe for Change: Standing Up to Antisemitism, Dorfman (who is best known for starring in Netflix's popular, controversial teen drama series 13 Reasons Why and who publicly came out as a trans woman last year in an emotional interview with Time Magazine) joins Jewish celebrities, chefs, activists, and leaders for a delicious dinner where they "celebrate the Jewish experience, discuss the recent and historic acts of hate and violence against the Jewish community and talk about how we can raise awareness and build allyship against it."
The latest installment of the Recipe for Change series produced by LeBron James' The SpringHill Company, the Standing Up to Antisemitism special also stars hosts Ilana Glazer, Moshe Kasher, and Idina Menzel, as well as chefs Nancy Silverton, Einat Admony, and Michael Twitty, with celeb guests including Skylar Astin, Michael Ian Black, Rachel Bloom, Rabbi Sharon Brous, Alex Edelman, Hannah Einbinder, Jordan Firstman, Lori Gottlieb, Bryan Greenberg, Jonathan Greenblatt, Hari Nef, Josh Peck, Zac Posen, Ruth Reichl, Rachel Sumekh, Michael Zegen, and Rachel Dratch.
And Out has an exclusive clip!
"If I think about my day-to-day, what's most threatening is not my Judaism, as a person walking down the street. It just isn't," Dorfman says in the clip. "It just fundamentally isn't. It's my trans identity. And it's also one of the most marginalized groups in this country, in the world. And that threatens me significantly more on a physical level, on an emotional level."
When asked about whether or not she gets the support she needs as a trans woman from the Jewish community at large, she continued, saying: "I feel really fortunate that I have a family who, for the most part...my Jewish community are my relatives for the most part. But no, I don't feel like the Jewish community as a whole is supporting."
"I wanna say thank you for sharing that," fellow dinner guest Rabbi Sharon Brous tells Dorfman after she shares her thoughts and feelings. "I think that the American Jewish community is being held to account by trans and non-binary people and Jews of color. And so I think it's changing. We're in this moment of transformation right now between the old way and the new way. And the new way is fiercely loving and beautiful and also open to learning and making mistakes and growing."
"It's really inspiring to hear that," Dorfman replies. "I think ultimately it's generational. And I love that you're so progressive in doing that work. It's really moving for me to hear."
Recipe for Change: Standing Up to Antisemitism premieres April 14 on the Jubilee YouTube channel. Watch the official trailer in the video below.
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