The Yiddish Book Center's

Wexler Oral History Project

A growing collection of in-depth interviews with people of all ages and backgrounds, whose stories about the legacy and changing nature of Yiddish language and culture offer a rich and complex chronicle of Jewish identity.

"I'm an American, I speak English... and by the way your Yiddish is terrible!": My Mother at 103

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Helen Kurzban, Brooklyn-born native Yiddish speaker and former administrator in the New York City public schools, remembers how as a young girl she helped her mother with her English language skills. She relates the story of how her mother, at the age of 103, equated mastery of English with being a proud American.

This is an excerpt from an oral history with Helen Kurzban.

This excerpt is in English.

Helen Kurzban was born in New York, New York in 1930.

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Other video highlights from this oral history

Consequences of Using Yiddish in a German Class

1 min 10 sec

Father enters U.S. under false identity

3 min 14 sec

Fate of Family Members Who Remained in Europe

1 min 47 sec

"In a shlemazl darf men hobn mazl": How My Cousin Survived the Holocaust

1 min 27 sec

"American Children Speak English!": Discouraged from Using Yiddish

1 min 19 sec

What's Lobster in Yiddish?: Teaching Yiddish to Senior Citizens

4 min 38 sec

Teaching about Jewish Humor

2 min 4 sec

Teaching The Bintl Brief

1 min 22 sec

Remembering Yiddish Radio and Newspapers

1 min 26 sec

Facing Antisemitism in Washington D.C.

3 min 15 sec

Healthcare in the International Worker's Order

2 min 40 sec

More information about this oral history excerpt

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