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(PDF) Isaac Leeser and Slavery: A Match Made in Richmond

Isaac Leeser and Slavery: A Match Made in Richmond

2023, American Jewish History

Looks at the views of Isaac Leeser (1806-1868), leader of traditional Judaism in the United States, on slavery, abolitionism, and race. Leeser, born in Westphalia, immigrated to the United States at 17. He first lived in Richmond, Virginia from 1824-1829, before moving to Philadelphia, where he became a leader of the Jewish community and editor of The Occident, a Jewish journal that circulated across the United States and the Atlantic world. This paper focuses on Leeser's sympathy towards slavery, antipathy towards abolitionism, racist attitudes towards African Americans, and insistence that American Jews be considered white. The article highlights Leeser's time in Richmond in shaping these views.