Have you ever looked around Los Angeles and felt there might be a seed of Jewish history in a building, a business, a street name?

The first record of a Jewish presence in the pueblo that became the City of Los Angeles was in the late 1840s.  The census of 1850 counted 8 Jews.  As of 2022 Los Angeles represented the 2nd largest Jewish community in the United States. Its size and diversity make it unique. The community includes 565,000 Jewish individuals living in nearly 300,000 households.  

From the beginning these urban pioneers took an active role in every facet of the City's life. One of the seven members of the City Council was Jewish. The city attorney in 1862, city treasurer in 1876 and chief of police in 1878 were also Jews. Since the city’s American beginnings, Jews have shaped the social, economic, and cultural life of Los Angeles. They emerged as early leaders in commerce, civic life, and philanthropy, propelling the city’s growth while enriching its multiethnic character. By the twentieth century, the Jewish population had diversified substantially, setting the stage for disparate community experiences and destinies. Jews occupied a place at both the center and margins of urban life. Not only did Jews shape Los Angeles in important ways, their own religious and ethnic identities in turn were shaped by the city’s culture of self-reinvention. They exerted an enduring and important influence on the city’s development.

If you are interested in how the past brought the Jewish community of Los Angeles to today, join us in this SDG for a thoughtful examination of how the present molded today's dynamic 'future' in the Los Angeles Jewish community.

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