ACTIVIST SPOTLIGHT: SHIRLEY ADELMAN

Shirley Adelman is a Workers Circle activist originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She frequently engages in virtual activism with the Workers Circle and participates in First Fridays. Shirley is a writer and poet. Shirley conversed with Emily, our Social Justice Associate, by phone to create this reflection.  

I grew up in a Yiddish/English home in Strawberry Mansion, a section of North Philadelphia that had a sizable population of Jewish residents, many of whom spoke Yiddish. Through the Workers Circle and The Forward,  I was connected to issues of social justice and Yiddishkeit.

My family was impacted by the Russian pogroms. The pogroms left my mother an only child. This trauma had a great impact on both my mother and me. I was the only girl in my family and much younger than my brothers. My mother’s sense of loss was imprinted on me, and she remained very cautious and protective into my young adulthood. I wrote about these experiences in my poem entitled ‘Ammunition’ and  ‘My Mother’s Eyes,” a work of creative nonfiction. Much of my work calls out for justice: social, racial justice, medical for all.

My grandfather had owned a shop where townspeople could buy the necessities. There were two poor families who could not afford the goods. My grandfather gave these families food and other necessities without expecting anything in return. When he learned Jews in America were free to practice their faith, he gave them money for their voyage to the United States. His way of embodying the spirit of tikkun olam, literally repairing the world, impacted and inspired my own activism. Although my Zayde (grandfather) died ten years before I was born, his kindness was remembered. Standing with my mother outside the corner store, where she bought fruits and vegetables, women would bless me in memory of my Zayde.

When I was 16 years old, my brother, Charlie, was awarded a Fulbright to teach in England. I was able to accompany my brother to England where I attended an independent school at a US Air Force Base. This experience was even more of an awakening than living in England. I had wonderful teachers, and both the teachers and students were respectful of perspectives other than their own. When students participated in protests against nuclear weapons, it reinforced my desire to engage in dialogue with people who might hold different opinions and viewpoints. I returned home in my senior year of high school and became actively involved in working for reforms by writing articles for my school paper on the need for health care for all, as I experienced it while living in England. I went door to door in support of candidates that offered positive changes.

I became a teacher of English and Writing. I primarily taught at community colleges in Philadelphia. During one semester at a community college, I taught a special program called Project Return. This was a small group of students who were returning to their studies after years away from school for a variety of reasons. For example, some were forced to quit school in the past to support their families while other students may have gotten into trouble with the law or become addicted to drugs and unable to function. My teaching experiences impacted my writing. I wrote a poem entitled ‘Strangulation’ about the failure to fund public schooling for Black children. I also wrote a poem about the pain students are going through due to gun violence. Originally, I did not want to share this poem with my grandchildren until my 13-year-old grandson told me he wanted to become fluent in another language because he thought he would be unable to live safely in the United States when he was an adult.  My granddaughter is following my path as a writer for  her school paper, engaging in issues of social importance. I am so pleased that my children and grandchildren are guided by the spirit of tikkun olam. 

I continue writing and publishing in a variety of journals. Because ill and disabled people often get left by the wayside, I try to publish in medical humanities journals and those centered on disabilities. I also frequently engage in virtual activism with the Workers Circle. Participating in First Fridays and contacting my lawmakers on critical issues really helps with the feelings of isolation brought on by the pandemic. 

Read some of Shirley’s moving and important work below: 

My Mother’s Eyes, from Yiddish Culture

Signing, from Kaleidoscope: Exploring The Experience Of Disability Through Literature And The Fine Arts

Uniformed, from Blue Collar Review

Half a Day, from Jewish Currents

Trapped, from Blue Collar Review