Historical Assessment of the Transformation of Kibbutzim of Israel’s Southern Arava By: Morgan E. Reisinger Project Advisors: Professor Bland Addison Professor Peter Hansen April 2019 A Major Qualifying Project submitted to the faculty of Worcester Polytechnic Institute in partial fulfilment of the requirement for degrees of Bachelor of Science This report represents work of WPI undergraduate learners submitted to the faculty as evidence of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its web site without editorial or peer review. For more information about the projects program at WPI, see https://www.wpi.edu/project-based-learning Abstract Kibbutzim of Israel are utopia-driven communal settlements that spearheaded the return of Zionist Jews to Palestine in the early 1900s. Traditional kibbutzim are completely collective, meaning everything is shared equally, but make up roughly 10% of Israel’s 270 current kibbutzim. Political and financial crises compounded throughout the end of the twentieth century to initiate widespread privatization throughout Israeli kibbutzim. The purpose of this project was to assess degree to which the kibbutzim of the southern Arava transformed individually and collectively. ii Table of Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................................................... ii Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1 Historical Background ................................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Historical Significance of the Holy Land............................................................................................... 4 1.2 Arabs in Palestine ................................................................................................................................ 4 1.3 Zionism and Theodor Herzl .................................................................................................................. 5 1.4 Balfour Declaration - Treaty of Versailles ............................................................................................ 6 1.5 Rule over Palestine: The Ottomans and the British Mandate ............................................................. 7 1.6 Arab Revolt (1936), Arab intifadas ...................................................................................................... 7 1.7 UN decision to partition Palestine (1947) - State of Israel .................................................................. 8 1.8 Arab-Israeli (Independence) War of 1948 ........................................................................................... 8 Chapter 2 Introduction to Kibbutzim and the Kibbutz Movement ............................................................. 10 2.1 A New Type of Community ................................................................................................................ 10 2.2 Traditional Collectivity and Authority ................................................................................................ 10 2.3 Collective Child Rearing ..................................................................................................................... 11 2.4 The Forces of Change (1977-1985) .................................................................................................... 11 Chapter 3 Kibbutz Ketura ............................................................................................................................. 16 3.1 The Arava Institute for Environmental Sciences ............................................................................... 23 Chapter 4 Personal Experiences on Kibbutz Ketura .................................................................................... 25 4.1 Shabbat on Kibbutz Ketura ................................................................................................................ 25 4.2 The Mountain .................................................................................................................................... 27 4.3 Cats, Dogs, Horses, Oh My! ............................................................................................................... 28 4.4 Tu BiShvat .......................................................................................................................................... 29 4.5 Cello Performance ............................................................................................................................. 31 4.6 Pub Ketura ......................................................................................................................................... 32 Chapter 5 Kibbutz Ketura Kibbutznik Biographies ....................................................................................... 32 5.1 Bill Slott - Kibbutznik .......................................................................................................................... 33 5.2 Cathie Granit - Kibbutznik; Program Director of Academics, Arava Institute ................................... 35 5.3 Sara Cohen - Kibbutznik ..................................................................................................................... 36 5.4 Leah Kayman - Kibbutznik .................................................................................................................. 38 5.5 Avigail Morris - Kibbutznik, Director of Archives ............................................................................... 39 5.6 Judy Bar-Lev - Founder, Kibbutznik ................................................................................................... 40 iii 5.7 Moshe Falkof - Kibbutznik ................................................................................................................. 42 Chapter 6 The Financial Crisis of 1985 ......................................................................................................... 44 6.1 The Greater Kibbutz Movement ........................................................................................................ 44 6.2 Kibbutz Ketura ................................................................................................................................... 46 Chapter 7 Kibbutzim Descriptions: Arava Valley and Urban Case Studies .................................................. 49 7.1 Lotan .................................................................................................................................................. 49 7.2 Grofit .................................................................................................................................................. 54 7.3 Eilot .................................................................................................................................................... 59 7.4 Neot Semadar .................................................................................................................................... 65 7.5 Samar ................................................................................................................................................. 70 7.6 Elifaz ................................................................................................................................................... 76 7.7 Migvan ............................................................................................................................................... 79 7.8 Glil Yam .............................................................................................................................................. 84 Chapter 8 Authority in Singular, Local, and National Kibbutz Contexts ...................................................... 89 8.1 The Maskeerem ................................................................................................................................. 89 8.2 The Kibbutz Movement ..................................................................................................................... 90 8.3 The Hevel Eilot Regional Council ....................................................................................................... 93 Chapter 9 Discussion of the Arava Kibbutzim’s Evolution and Identity ...................................................... 96 9.1 What Makes the Arava Unique? ........................................................................................................ 96 9.2 Gender on the Kibbutz ....................................................................................................................... 97 9.3 Kibbutz Identity .................................................................................................................................. 98 9.3.1 Personalities of the Arava ........................................................................................................... 99 9.3.2 Which Was Your War? .............................................................................................................. 100 9.3.3 Balancing the Self and the Group ............................................................................................. 101 9.4.1 Privatization as a Dirty Word .................................................................................................... 102 9.4.2 Evolving Understanding