Summer camp for Jewish children of color ‘a place where everybody belongs’
At Camp Be’chol Lashon, Jewish children of color celebrate their differences together.
Maya Johnson, 7, of New York, is playfully swung into the lake by her friends July 28 during Camp Be'chol Lashon, a sleepaway camp for Jewish children of color in Petaluma, Calif.
Isaac Harrison, 10, of Oakland, Calif., is embraced July 29 by his new friends, including Naftali Torres, 10, also of Oakland, left, and Mkale Friedman, 10, of Philadelphia, as Isaac prepares to leave Camp Be’chol Lashon.
Zohara Grossman-Naples, 15, of Philomath, Oregon, center, hugs younger campers July 28 as they roast s'mores during a fire pit at Camp Be'chol Lashon.
Surrounded by campers who will have their Bar and Bat Mitzvahs this year, camp director Sarah Weinberg speaks July 29 about the week's Torah portion during Camp Be'chol Lashon, a sleepaway camp for Jewish children of color, in Petaluma, Calif.
Judah, 10, of Vermont, center, and Kallie House, 12, of Sugar Land, Texas, right, react July 28 after the prayer over the challah bread is recited during Shabbat at Camp Be'chol Lashon in Petaluma, Calif.
Baileigh Davis, 11, of Houston, left, and Apiyo Bocast, 11, of Bozeman, Montana, laugh while swimming in the lake July 27 during Camp Be'chol Lashon, a Jewish sleepaway camp for children of color in Petaluma, Calif.
Wearing bandanas for "Pirate Day," Major Smith, 10, right, looks to Sasha Wernick, 11, of Brooklyn, as they dress up July 28 celebrating the Jewish people of the Caribbean during Camp Be'chol Lashon, a sleepaway camp for Jewish children of color in Petaluma, Calif.
Eli, 12, of Phoenix, Ariz., left, and Sasha Wernick, 11, of Brooklyn, catch and release fish July 28 during Camp Be'chol Lashon, a sleepaway camp for Jewish children of color in Petaluma, Calif.
Liv Jenkins, 10, of San Carlos, Calif., seated at center, and other campers practice their singing before a talent show while climbing a large tree July 28 at Camp Be'chol Lashon, a sleepaway camp for Jewish children of color in Petaluma, Calif.
A summer sleepaway camp in California serves as a haven for Jewish children of color — many who grew up often feeling like outliers.