Amid rising antisemitism, the vivid language of Yiddish makes a comeback

The scenes were jarring, as intended, and meant to provoke fear: neo-Nazis parading in front of Disney World and crowding a highway bridge in Orlando, shouting antisemitic slurs, waving swastika flags, saluting Hitler.

Avi Hoffman has his own way of countering such hate. Armed with a laptop in his Miami suburb, he teaches Yiddish — a language that he believes is intrinsic to Jewish heritage and one that offers the soothing benefits of a bowl of grandmother’s chicken soup.

"Verter zol men vegn un nit tseyln,” says Hoffman, an actor who co-founded the cultural nonprofit Yiddishkayt Initiative, slowly reciting the proverb that translates to “Words should be weighed, not counted.”

His students repeat after him from various parts of the country, delving into a world they only knew in snippets while growing up yet now see as central to their identity.

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