Statistics
According to a recent survey by the Government, 700,000 Israelis are living outside Israel, yes, that's 700,000! That's ca. 12% of the total Jewish Israeli population! And over half of them are in N. America and a quarter in Europe.
The problem with this large number living abroad, is that their children tend to assimilate very easily. With ca. 70% of them not being religious, if they cease to be Israelis they effectively cease to be Jewish. In that respect they are unlike their Jewish diaspora counterparts, who have a greater tendency to cling to Jewish identity. There is another campaign planned to try to bring some of these Israelis back to Israel, with the Absorption Ministry prepared to spend NIS m150, according to the WZO it will have limited success.
Another report by the Association for Civil Rights indicates that Israelis have become more racist over the years, with a greater proportion (ca. 75%) preferring not to mix with Arabs, not wanting to live near Arabs, and regarding Arabs as uneducated and anti-social. This may be a bad trend in a democracy, but given the continued antagonism and violent reaction of both Palestinian and Israeli Arabs to anything to do with Israel and Israelis this counter-reaction is not so surprising.
At the same time there has been an increase in anti-Ethiopian incidents among Israelis. Last week there was a scandal in Petach Tikva when it was revealed that four Ethiopian girls were being segregated in a separate classroom and given breaks at different times to the white Israeli girls. This was in a religious school, and the Principal justified it by saying that the Ethiopians were not at the same level or religious observance as the other girls. But, everyone, up to the Minister of Education and the Prime Minister labelled it for what it was - racism, i.e. the separation of the races, otherwise known as apartheid! The Govt. announced that it will give NIS b1 to help Ethiopians to assimilate.
Now let's be clear, Israel is not an "apartheid State" as some would maintain, and the reaction to this incident clearly shows that, since the Govt. clearly repudiated this practice, and the Principal and teachers who perpetrated it are being investigated. There was also a case of an entire kindergarten that was maintained as an Ethiopian one to keep the kids separate. This also has been stopped. Anyway, those who call Israel an "apartheid state" refer to separation from the Arabs, not among Israelis themselves. By the way, I deliver food every month as part of an organization called Keren Shalom to mostly Ethiopian families, but we also include poor Russian families. We don 't discriminate.
The problem with this large number living abroad, is that their children tend to assimilate very easily. With ca. 70% of them not being religious, if they cease to be Israelis they effectively cease to be Jewish. In that respect they are unlike their Jewish diaspora counterparts, who have a greater tendency to cling to Jewish identity. There is another campaign planned to try to bring some of these Israelis back to Israel, with the Absorption Ministry prepared to spend NIS m150, according to the WZO it will have limited success.
Another report by the Association for Civil Rights indicates that Israelis have become more racist over the years, with a greater proportion (ca. 75%) preferring not to mix with Arabs, not wanting to live near Arabs, and regarding Arabs as uneducated and anti-social. This may be a bad trend in a democracy, but given the continued antagonism and violent reaction of both Palestinian and Israeli Arabs to anything to do with Israel and Israelis this counter-reaction is not so surprising.
At the same time there has been an increase in anti-Ethiopian incidents among Israelis. Last week there was a scandal in Petach Tikva when it was revealed that four Ethiopian girls were being segregated in a separate classroom and given breaks at different times to the white Israeli girls. This was in a religious school, and the Principal justified it by saying that the Ethiopians were not at the same level or religious observance as the other girls. But, everyone, up to the Minister of Education and the Prime Minister labelled it for what it was - racism, i.e. the separation of the races, otherwise known as apartheid! The Govt. announced that it will give NIS b1 to help Ethiopians to assimilate.
Now let's be clear, Israel is not an "apartheid State" as some would maintain, and the reaction to this incident clearly shows that, since the Govt. clearly repudiated this practice, and the Principal and teachers who perpetrated it are being investigated. There was also a case of an entire kindergarten that was maintained as an Ethiopian one to keep the kids separate. This also has been stopped. Anyway, those who call Israel an "apartheid state" refer to separation from the Arabs, not among Israelis themselves. By the way, I deliver food every month as part of an organization called Keren Shalom to mostly Ethiopian families, but we also include poor Russian families. We don 't discriminate.
posted by Jack Cohen at 7:12 PM
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