The Institute for Jewish Policy Research reported that the intermarriage rate in Britain has been 23-26% since the 1980s. In the USA, more than half of Jewish people marry out. Jewish people have intermingled for centuries, so there will be millions of people with Jewish heritage on one side of their family.

What about the children and their children? Many are not considered Jewish by religious and Israeli institutions. Yet their lived experience and family history are an integral part of our rich Jewish spectrum. One of my parents is Jewish, the other is not. For many years, I didn’t feel Jewish enough, or pro-Israel enough, to name and claim my experiences as Jewish. This is my story.

I want to tell you the personal and political story of my journey through Derry and why you will always be part of my heart. It’s a good story. I came to Derry because of love.

3½ years ago, I had a crush on a guy I met through my freelance co-op work. I gathered up all my courage, I rehearsed, I got on the phone and rang him. I said “Hi ... I’m not ringing you about work. I’d like to be more than friends”. And he said “Yes!”. And I said, "Wooo!" I ran round my house like this ... "oh my god! Oh My God! OH MY GOD!" So then we met up, in Derry.

Politically in 2014, Israel was bombarding Gaza with bombs. I joined hundreds of people in Derry and thousands of people around the world in protest against that. I helped form Jewish Voice for Just Peace. It's an organisation to make our voice louder. "Us" being Jewish people in Ireland who are against the war, Israel’s war, on Palestinian people

Everything was going well with the guy and after a few months I moved in.

Sir, – As Jewish people, we agree with David Landy and Ronit Lentin (“Anti-Semitism claims are used for political end”, May 2nd). We question, why now?

We believe the smear campaign is partly because the British Labour Party, led by Jeremy Corbyn, is more socialist and promotes human rights for everyone – for Palestinians, for refugees and child refugees.

The campaign is timed as an attack on the Labour Party before the Assembly elections on May 5th, and to divert attention from Israeli and UK government abuses of refugees.

Of course, anti-Jewish racism exists in the UK and Ireland and it must be challenged.

This week’s Friday’s Child is Jo Bird. Jo moved to from Manchester to Derry for love a few years ago. She is a founder member of Jewish Voice for Just Peace – Ireland. Her day job is promoting and developing democratic businesses with Co-operative Alternatives.

How would you describe yourself?

Part of a long line of Jewish socialists and radicals. My mother’s grandparents were Jewish refugees from Poland and Russia. After an uncle was killed in a pogrom attack (ethnic cleansing), the family fled to Manchester in 1905, following older brothers who travelled first. In the 1930s, my mum’s dad, Bernard Barry, was arrested fighting Mosley’s fascists. My mum’s uncle, Woolfie Winnick, fought fascism in the Spanish civil war with the International Brigade 1936-39. Contact was lost with extended family that stayed in Europe - we assume they were killed in the holocaust. My mum ‘married out’ with my dad who is from a long line of working class English socialists.