‘What Does the New BJL Mean To You?’

• Prev
• 1 of 3
• Next

We get answers from some of the Bukharian community’s most influential voices

What does the Bukharian Jewish Link mean to you? I interviewed four active people in the Queens Bukharian community who were instrumental in founding the BJL, to paint a portrait of exciting possibilities for this new publication. The following material has been stylistically edited to reflect a glimpse of our collective hopes and dreams.

First, I spoke to Avraham Yakubov, publisher of the BJL, to discuss his hopes and dreams for his new publication.

AS: It’s a big undertaking to start a new publication! What do you hope to accomplish with your new paper?

Avraham Yakubov:: Actually, I would like to see the paper be a paper of the Bukharian people.  We want the paper to unite the Bukharian communities here in New York and all over the United States. The reality is that it’s sometimes very difficult to unify our community and coordinate because everybody is just so busy. I hope to create a channel that will make it easier for peers to catch up with each other and stay abreast of all the latest developments in our vast community. The BJL’s goal is truly to keep the Bukharian people “linked” together.  One of the ways we hope to accomplish this is by making the younger generation aware of how rich and diverse our culture has become. We have many rabbis, lawyers, doctors, business owners, and other professionals whom our youth are simply unaware of. We hope to make them aware through various articles and features. Hopefully, with this awareness, our youth will feel empowered and take advantage of their opportunities.

We also want to get our name out onto the political map. We have a very large community that is just itching to get involved on a deeper level and contribute. However, the political world needs to notice us first. This paper will help us connect by broadcasting us to the English-speaking public. 

AS: That’s quite bold! I think our readers would also like to know what makes this publication unique juxtaposed to other Bukharian publications. Why do you think the target audience will benefit from this paper more than the ones already available to them?

Avraham Yakubov: Our paper is different than other papers in the community in that we are primarily an English publication geared to an English-speaking audience. Many of the new generation do not read or write Russian, including myself. Our target is the future - not the past. The younger generation’s focus is how to make our new homes (Israel, USA, Canada, Europe) a better place for us to live in.  Therefore, our overall and overarching goal is to facilitate the growing voice of our youth.

I next interviewed Simcha Mushayev, who in many ways personifies the new generation of Bukharian Jews. He began the Alliance of Bukharian Americans (ABA) to push forward an agenda of community growth and is involved in a host of other initiatives.

AS: Simcha, please tell us a little about yourself.  What’s your background and how did you get so proactive within this community?

Simcha Mushayev: I came to New York in 1991 and immediately started a yeshiva education, as this was the ultimate reason why my parents left Russia. I graduated from Yeshiva Chafetz Chaim of Queens, received my Master’s degree in Mathematics and Statistics, and currently work as an actuary. One thing that the Yeshiva and my rabbinical mentors taught me was that I cannot live selfishly; I need to help others and spread Torah within my community. Hence, I got involved with the Beth Gavriel Community Center, community schools, youth programs, and numerous other community projects.

As the community expanded, I realized that we didn’t have proper political representation; we’re essentially living without a voice. As a result, young professionals including myself decided to form the Alliance of Bukharian Americans (ABA, or “father” in Hebrew) to unify the entire community and get proper representation at various political levels. In conjunction with the new Rabanut system under Rabbi Yitzchak Israeli, I feel the community is making great moves and is becoming more united and stronger day by day.

AS: Very impressive! What do you personally hope this first major English Bukharian publication will accomplish for the Bukharian community? What are your dreams for your community, in general?

Simcha Mushayev: Well, I hope this newspaper will unite the entire community at various levels by linking us all through an updated coverage of what is happening around us. I want the community to continue growing and uniting until we have the ability to support and provide for not only ourselves, but also have the ability to help other communities as well.

The next person on my list was my friend, Yaniv Meirov. He is the Operations Manager of the Chazaq organization, which has done a wonderful job of really catapulting the entire Queens community to new heights in its spiritual and social arenas, with special emphasis on outreach work within the Bukharian community.

AS: Yaniv, my dear friend. You’ve really helped so many community projects takeoff, including this publication. I actually get to see how busy you are trying to inspire as many people as possible, and I am always impressed with your ability to operate with no sleep. Since you put so much into this, please relate to our readers what you think this paper will offer.

Yaniv Meirov: The Bukharian community has a very rich and unique culture and I truly hope this publication will offer its readers, whether Bukharian or not, a different perspective into a truly under-covered ethnic group. Furthermore, seeing and hearing the buzz about this publication, I believe that this paper has become the rabbinical voice, the political voice, and the voice of the Bukharian people all at once, and this is before it was even published! Although the Queens Bukharian community is the largest in the U.S., I hope that the BJL reaches every other Bukharian community as well. There are sizable Bukharian communities throughout the country and some even in Canada and Austria. I hope that this paper truly links all of the communities together in unprecedented ways.

The last person I interviewed was Yaakov Serle, who has been co-publisher of the Queens Jewish Link since its inception five years ago. The Queens Jewish Link is an affiliate of the BJL.

AS: Yaakov, please tell our readers what you envision this paper will do for the Bukharian Jewish community?

Yaakov Serle: I grew up in Kew Gardens Hills around the time at which the Bukharian community started moving to Queens. It’s great to witness the community grow and see the new generation flourish. You have so many professionals, doctors, lawyers, etc. I feel this paper will further integrate the Bukharian community with other communities around the U.S. So much of their culture and rich heritage remains inaccessible for the broader Jewish population because until now there were only Russian publications.  I’m hoping this publication will change that, and allow the community to really become independent and established.

Also, this community has so much to offer: great family values, a caring atmosphere, and close-knit charm. I feel fortunate that I am able to know the community. I also feel comfortable even though I’m not Bukharian and feel it’s an honor to help this community grow. I hope that other communities really get the chance to understand this one better and, like I said before, “integrate.”

AS: Being so involved in the community, you must have a dream for its future. What do you hope to see years from now in this community? What will it take for you to look back and say, “The BJL truly was the start of something magnificent”?

Yaakov Serle: Well, with all the chesed and organizational work that this community is responsible for, who knows? Maybe we will greet Moshiach by then. You guys move so quickly. Look at the Hatzolah volunteers here in Flushing - so many of them are already from within the Bukharian community. The level of growth over the next five years is really anybody’s guess, but the indicators all point toward great growth and that’s what I’m hoping for.

In the end, we all hope and dream that this publication will be the start of a newly unified and powerful voice within our community. A new year is approaching, with untold possibilities and opportunities. May we all be written for success and may all the Jewish communities around the world experience meaningful growth, Amen v’Amen.