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Ethiopian Immigrants in Israel.Pdf Foreword economy in an individualistic society. Moreover, there was an unpredictable psychological Are ye not as the chtldren of the Ethiopians unto element: the status of the Ethiopian Jewish Me, O children of lsrael? saith the Lord. community was inverted-from that of a pariah (Amos lX,7) group and religious minority (albeit part of the majority in terms of colour and language) in Africa, The manner in which the old-new nation of lsrael to that of part of the dominant Jewish majority practises the biblical Jewish value of tzedakkah- (albeit, in terms of language and colour, a readily social justice-in the contemporary world is the identifiable group) in lsrael. subject of this important and timely report by Steven Kaplan and Hagar Salamon. lt introduces a ln analyzing the problems of resettling the new human rights 'track'within JPR's lsrael Ethiopian Jews in lsrael, we enter the famrliar Programme that signifies a commitment to widen territory of current political debate in free societies our policy research agenda to include issues on the contentious area of public policy-welfare, concerning the treatment of minority communities. jobs, housing, education-and the limits of interventionist strategies and social engineering The dramatic rescue of thousands of Ethiopian by even well-meaning governments. Ouestions of Jews from war, famine and oppression and their race, disadvantage and social exclusion bedevil transportation 'on eagles' wings' (Exodus XlX, 4) most contemporary Western societies. lntegrating by the lsrael airforce to a sanctuary in the large numbers of poor, black immigrants into an 'Promised Land' appears to fulfil in our days the affluent society is not a problem unique to lsrael. promises of the Hebrew prophets, repeated in However, because of lsrael's Law of Return, the Jewish prayers over two millennia, about kibbutz lsraeli situation stands in marked contrast to that galuyot-the ingathering of the exiles' to Zion. in West European countries or North America. As 'Operation Moses' in 1984 and 'Operation Jews, the Ethiopians entered not as refugees or Solomon' in '1991 were unique events: for the first asylum-seekers but with the automatic right to time in history, black people were taken from settle in the country and to participate fully in Af rica not in order to enslave them but to national life as citizens from the day of their arrival. welcome them as full and equal citizens of a democracy. The altruism of the lsraeli public was As this report demonstrates, while legal matched by an unusual consensus among lsrael's citizenship confers the rights of membership of normally bitterly divided political factions: it was the body politic and the duties of participation on agreed that there was a sacred duty to rescue, those who would seek to become insiders in the without reservation or regard to the costs nation-state, it does not automatically translate involved, all the Ethiopian Jews, including the into integration and social equality. Therefore, this sick, the elderly, 'the widow and the orphan'. This case study is of wider interest to those concerned principled stand made Jews worldwide feel with social policy and race relations. lsrael has proud. Many saw in lsrael's generosity of spirit a unparalleled experience in coping with the sudden moral indictment of other nations' inaction and influx of newcomers and a fine record in the hypocrisy when confronted by refugee crises both absorption of traumatized refugees and their during and since the Nazi era. The dramatic transformation into productive and patriotic events in the Horn of Afrrca also provided Jews citizens. The state provides an impressive array of with clear evidence to rebut the Soviet-inspired special benefits for immigrants including antisemitic canard that Zionism equalled racism. lt language classes, health coverage, counselling, was a tangible demonstration, in lsaiah's phrase, job training, housing and mortgage loan facilities of lsrael's fulfilling the role of or la'goyirn-'a light and a commitment to affirmative action in the unto the nations'-and of Judaism's impulse to military and higher education. Yet, notwithstanding practise charity rather than preach it. these assets, and the positive start and widespread goodwill displayed towards the But these are not messianic days and the saga of Ethiopian Jews, the findings are chastening. the Ethiopian Jews did not end with the drama of successf ul rescue. lt had to be followed up by the Despite the lsraeli determination to deny the less glamorous task of rehabilitation and significance of race and to emphasize the resettlement. The challenge of settling commonality of religion and Zionist ideology, newcomers from a ruralThird World background many of the facts reported here are problems in an urban environment in an advanced Western common to the globalAfrican diaspora-e.g. economy now faced the lsraeli authorities. There above-average rates of single parents, male were the practical problems of the social unemployment and low-wage jobs, and adaptation by penniless, tradition-minded, tribal dependence on welfare. Particularly noteworthy is people to a free-market, consumer-oriented the transmission of this disadvantage to the pagel Ethiopan mm grantsln lsrael:experienceandprospects jprlreportno.l OJPR 1998 youth, who are prone to under-achievement in will have to develop quantitative and qualitative education and over-representation in special indicators for comparative analysis of social education classes. development among the various edof-ethnic communities. As the report suggests, in order to These social problems, as well as official indecision accomplish this result, the lsraeli authorities will on issues such as dispersal and concentration in have to provide for the collection and availability of housing, the unforeseen results of exposure to relevant demographic and socio-economic data on HIV/AIDS and the unhelpful attitude of the minorities and for ethnic monitoring and make Orthodox rabbinate, have served to increase them available for public scrutiny. : stereotyping by the general public as well as disaffection and charges of racism on the part of Perplexing dilemmas and fundamental policy the Ethiopians. ln defence of the authorities, it questions which remain unanswered by lsrael's must be said that more pressing political elites are relevant to, but beyond the scope of, problems, such as the peace process, have this report and the Ethiopian experience. Does the claimed lsrael's attention. lt can also be argued concept of citizenship confer social as well as that the 1990s and the swiftly changing, complex political rights and are these rights conferred on society of lsrael were not a propitious time and individuals or the group? Does common place for this immigration. The egalitarian and citizenship imply an acculturation process? Are austere atmosphere of 1950s lsrael, which was there limits to differences that cannot be contained dominated by agricultural pioneering, would no within the boundaries of a liberal democracy? doubt have provided a more compatible How far should, and could, a new nation like lsrael environment for the Ethiopians, in particular adults go in meeting the demands for cultural recognition with experience of dry-land farming. and accommodation by the various edot? These questions go to the heart of the contemporary The story of the Ethiopian Jews in lsrael is debate on social justice and the treatment of unfinished but the current realities have to be minorities in today's world. Clearly, lsrael is not faced. This report shows that the health of lsraeli the only country which confronts these challenges. society and the pursuit of social justice require the authorities to pay far more attention to social Professor Barry Kosmin policy and minority questions in the future. They Director of Research, JPR Glossary of Hebrew and Amharic words aliyah immigration to lsrael bagrut matriculation exams Halakha Jewish rabbinic law Knesset lsraeli parliament karavanim mobile homes ma'abarot tent camps mechina college preparatory course qessim/qessotch Ethiopian Jews' religious leaders Sigd a pilgrimage holiday which commemorates the Biblical return from exile te'ef traditional iron-rich grain zar spirit possession page2 Ethiopianimmigrants nlsrael:experenceandprospects jpr/reportno.l OJPR1998 Summary lsrael. Age, illness and childcare responsibilities mean that Ethiopians are less likely to be in the ln 1977 all but approximately 100 Beta lsrael labour force than other lsraelis. Their demographic (Falasha) lived in Ethiopia. Today, as a result of profile produces serious economic distress when immigration and natural growth, close to 65,000 combined with high unemployment and low Ethiopians live in lsrael and only a handful remain wages. A lack of skills means those seeking work in Africa. are often unsuccessful. Local surveys reveal that more than 50 per cent of Ethiopian households Demographically, the Ethiopian community is have no breadwinner. comparatively young: over 50 per cent are aged eighteen or under. The community also contains a The arrival of Ethiopian immigrants has confronted high percentage of both one-parent families (27 the lsraeli medical authoritres with a variety of per cent) and large households with six or more challenges. Many of the Ethiopians had been members. exposed to HIV in the Ethiopian capital. When it was discovered that blood donations of almost all Attempts have been made to avoid settling too Ethiopian Jews were being secretly destroyed, many Ethiopians in deprived areas. Yet a protests and riots resulted. This policy is currently comparatively large number of Ethiopians live in being revised and an extensive health education communities with social and economic problems programme has been developed. The trauma of and this affects their educational opportunities. their migration experiences and the shock of Providing educational f rameworks for the adapting to life in lsrael have produced problems immigrants has proven to be one of the most such as post-traumatic shock syndrome, complex challenges facing successive lsraeli depression and psychosomatic diseases.
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