Who we are

During the final decade of the twentieth century, tens of thousands of Bukharian Jews immigrated to the United States, joining earlier generations who had already established roots in North America. Families arriving from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and other parts of Central Asia faced the enormous challenges of starting over in a new country. Their immediate priorities were providing for their families, finding employment and housing, educating their children, and establishing the foundations of community life.

Yet alongside these practical challenges was a greater question: How would this ancient and proud Jewish community preserve its identity, traditions, language, culture and religious heritage in America?

A group of dedicated community activists recognized that the future of Bukharian Jewry in North America required something more than individual synagogues and independent organizations. It required a unified voice, a common vision and a national institution capable of representing the interests of the entire community.

That vision became a reality in May 1999.

On May 2–3, 1999, the Founding Congress of Bukharian Jews of the USA and Canada took place in New York.

The historic gathering brought together approximately 300 authorized delegates representing 54 community centers, cultural and educational organizations, public organizations and religious institutions.

At this founding assembly, the delegates unanimously adopted the organization's constitution and program, formally establishing the Congress of Bukharian Jews of the USA and Canada.

Boris Kandov, a community activist, businessman and philanthropist, was elected as the organization's first president.

The establishment of the Congress represented a defining moment in the modern history of Bukharian Jewry. For the first time, a national organization had been created with the purpose of bringing together the diverse Bukharian Jewish communities of North America under one umbrella.

It was more than the formation of an organization. It was a declaration that the Bukharian Jewish community would have a collective identity, a unified voice and a permanent place in American Jewish and civic life.

From its earliest days, the Congress sought to unite Bukharian Jewish communities beyond New York.

Its reach extended to communities in Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Cleveland, Denver, Seattle, New Jersey, Chicago, Washington, Toronto and Montreal.

This national structure allowed communities separated by geography to participate in a shared communal framework, creating opportunities for cooperation, representation and the preservation of a common heritage.

By the twentieth anniversary in 2019, approximately 100 public organizations and charitable foundations were operating under the Congress's umbrella, according to the anniversary account published by its president.

The Congress had developed into a significant representative institution, bringing together religious, educational, cultural, charitable and civic organizations.

From its inception, the Congress understood that preserving Bukharian Jewish identity required maintaining strong connections with the community's historic homeland and building relationships with governments and institutions internationally.

In August–September 1999, just months after its establishment, a delegation led by President Boris Kandov visited Uzbekistan to participate in celebrations marking the eighth anniversary of the country's independence.

The delegation was warmly received by Uzbekistan's Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs. According to the Uzbek ambassador's remarks at the 2019 anniversary celebration, the visit resulted in the Congress receiving permission to bring six Torah scrolls out of Uzbekistan. These Torah scrolls were subsequently transferred to newly established community centers in the United States.

This episode reflected the Congress's emerging role not only as a representative organization but also as a guardian of religious and cultural heritage.

Over the years, the Congress developed relationships with diplomatic representatives and government officials from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and other Central Asian countries, while also strengthening connections with the broader American Jewish community.

One of the most consequential developments in the Congress's early history was its involvement in expanding Jewish education for Bukharian children.

In 2001, the Congress joined Lev Leviev's ambitious educational initiative to establish the Jewish Institute of Queens (JIQ), the first yeshiva specifically established to serve the Bukharian Jewish community in America.

More than 800 children of Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union began attending the school.

With Lev Leviev providing financial support for students' education through 2009, the initiative helped make Jewish education accessible to families who otherwise might not have been able to afford it.

The project represented a major investment in the community's future. It created a generation of Jewish students who developed strong Jewish identities and religious foundations, with many graduates subsequently raising families of their own and continuing their children's Jewish education.

The initiative demonstrated the importance of combining communal leadership, philanthropy and educational infrastructure to secure the future of Jewish life.

Another defining milestone came in 2005, with the completion and dedication of the Bukharian Jewish Community Center, known as Kenessoi Kalan, in Forest Hills, Queens.

The center, dedicated in memory of Boris Kandov's parents, Efraim and Yaffa, provided the community with a permanent institutional home.

It brought together numerous organizations and activities under one roof, including:

• The Congress of Bukharian Jews.
• The veterans organization.
• The Roshnoi Educational and Publishing Center.
• The Union of Bukharian Jewish Writers, Poets and Journalists.
• The Congress Publishing House.
• One Heart matchmaking agency.
• Jewish child care services.
• Computer education classes.
• Bukhori and Hebrew language courses.

The center also became home to the editorial offices of The Bukharian Times, the national newspaper serving Bukharian Jews in America.

The creation of this center represented an important achievement in the community's development: the establishment of a physical and institutional foundation through which religious, educational, cultural and social life could flourish.

As the Congress developed, it increasingly became a representative voice for Bukharian Jews in the broader American community.

It established relationships and cooperative programs with prominent Jewish organizations, including the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, the World Jewish Congress, the Orthodox Union and the American Jewish Committee.

The Congress also worked to develop relationships with elected officials, government representatives and diplomatic missions.

A particularly significant milestone came in February 2019, when a delegation of Bukharian Jewish leaders traveled to Washington, D.C., to mark the organization's twentieth anniversary.

The delegation included community leaders, philanthropists, businesspeople, religious figures, cultural representatives and youth leaders.

During the visit, representatives met with nearly a dozen federal lawmakers and senior officials from the White House and the State Department. An official dinner and recognition ceremony took place at the United States Capitol, attended by more than 20 members of Congress and the Senate.

The delegation addressed issues including antisemitism, religious freedom, human rights, xenophobia and the importance of strengthening relationships between the United States and Central Asian countries.

The visit reflected how far the community had progressed: from a population of newly arrived immigrants to an organized community capable of engaging with national political and diplomatic leadership.

On May 5, 2019, the Congress celebrated its twentieth anniversary with a community and legislative breakfast in New York.

The gathering brought together elected officials, diplomats, religious leaders, community activists and representatives of the broader Bukharian Jewish community.

Among the distinguished guests was Uzbekistan's Ambassador to the United States, Javlon Vakhabov, who recognized the Congress's contribution to preserving Bukharian Jewish heritage and strengthening relations between Uzbekistan and the United States.

In his anniversary remarks, President Boris Kandov reflected on the community's remarkable transformation over the preceding two decades, emphasizing that Bukharian Jews had earned an important place within America's multiethnic and multireligious society while becoming prominent representatives of the centuries-old culture of Central Asia.

The twentieth anniversary was not simply a celebration of an organization's longevity. It was an opportunity to recognize the extraordinary achievements of a community that had successfully established itself in a new country while maintaining its religious traditions, cultural heritage and connection to its history.

The establishment of the Congress in 1999 marked a turning point in the modern history of Bukharian Jewry in North America.

What began as an effort to unite 54 community organizations developed into a national umbrella institution representing approximately 100 organizations and foundations by its twentieth anniversary.

Over its first two decades, the Congress helped strengthen communal unity, advance Jewish education, preserve cultural heritage, establish institutional infrastructure, build international relationships and give the Bukharian Jewish community a stronger voice in American public life.

But the work of the Congress is not simply about preserving the accomplishments of the past.

It is about ensuring that the next generation inherits a community that is even stronger, more united and more deeply connected to its Jewish identity.

The challenges facing today's Bukharian Jewish community are different from those confronting the immigrant generation of the 1990s. The needs of younger families, the changing nature of religious and communal life, the importance of Jewish education, and the preservation of the Bukhori language and cultural traditions all require renewed vision and leadership.

The founding generation built the foundation. The responsibility of today's leadership is to build upon it.

The Congress of Bukharian Jews of the USA and Canada was founded on the belief that a united community could accomplish what individual organizations could not. Twenty-five years later and beyond, that founding vision remains as relevant as ever.

Preserving our heritage. Strengthening our community. Building our future.