Zionist Leaders Research Articles

“Our Good Friend and Illustrious Coreligionist Theodor Herzl”: The Three Interviews of La epoka with the Zionist Leader and Hamidian Censorship

“Our Good Friend and Illustrious Coreligionist Theodor Herzl”: The Three Interviews of La epoka with the Zionist Leader and Hamidian Censorship

The ‘fires of destruction,’ Warsaw, August 1938? On the posthumous invention of Jabotinsky’s well-known annihilation prophecy

ABSTRACT Ze'ev Jabotinsky is one of the most fascinating figures among the leaders of the Zionist movement and founder of the right-wing political movement in Zionism. Many of his disciples and followers have attributed to him, and still do, a realistic assessment and even prophetic prediction of the Holocaust of European Jews during World War II. At the core of the pervasive cultivation of the myth lies a speech whereby the Zionist leader - it is claimed - in the summer of 1938, in Warsaw, on the traditional Jewish mourning day of Tisha B'Av, forewarned the Jews of Poland against the imminent catastrophe, which he termed the 'Fires of Destruction.' This speech is prevalent in public discourse, widespread in social networks and is frequently quoted by Israeli leaders. In this article, we submit that this apocryphal speech was never delivered by Jabotinsky. Moreover, we point out that Jabotinsky gave a completely different speech on this occasion and assess the time when these citations first appeared - twenty years after the event. We shall trace the process of the later invention of the text, the agents who strove to disseminate it and the mode of its reception evidence of Jabotinsky's status as prophet of the Holocaust.

Transnational Jewish Politics in the Interwar Period: Berlin Rabbi Joachim Prinz and the Yugoslav Zionists

AbstractThis article explores the journey of Berlin Rabbi Joachim Prinz (1902–1988) to Yugoslavia at the invitation of Zagreb Zionist leader Lavoslav Schick (1881–1941) in late 1935. It examines the transnational cooperation between German and Yugoslav Zionists in the interwar period and their efforts to cope with the plight of German and southeastern European Jewry alike. Although Jewish representatives of different countries cooperated intensively during the interwar period, we know little about it. Thus, this article intervenes in current research on European Jewish history and contributes to a growing interest in the transnational entanglements of European Jewry and Jewish politics in the 1930s and early 1940s by focusing on two important protagonists of Jewish interwar politics in Germany and Yugoslavia.

The battle over the Zionist maritime ethos: ‘Sea Day’ and claims to the Land of Israel’s sea culture

Within the Zionist movement, the sea initially served no nationalistic purpose; it was a means of transit, a conduit for ingathering the Jewish diaspora. The Zionist leadership neglected the sea as a tool, emphasizing ‘Jewish work’ in agriculture instead. But the sea held meaning in modern nationalism for many countries, and the pre-state Land of Israel was no exception. The Yishuv institutions began to recognize the sea’s significance for the national movement in the mid-1930s and acted to impose its authority in the field. It was then that conflicts erupted over the origins of Jewish seafaring, with the right-wing Revisionist movement laying claim to the Zionist sea ethos and attacking the central institutions’ initial dismissive attitude to the maritime field. This dispute, and its expressions surrounding Sea Day celebrations, can be understood within the Yishuv’s broader politics and the different institutions’ attempts to cement their own status.

Artists Behind Barbed Wire: Art Exhibitions in the Detention Camps in Cyprus, 1947–1948

ABSTRACT Between 1946 and 1949, more than 55,000 Holocaust refugees, 20 percent of them children and youth, were detained by the British in various camps in Cyprus, in order to prevent their entrance to Eretz Israel (Mandatory Palestine). Relief organizations and emissaries from Eretz Israel were engaged in providing basic needs, occupation, and education to the detainees. Among other initiatives, art classes were organized for the young and adults alike, and occasional exhibitions were held to display their works. This paper tells the story of these exhibitions from different perspectives – therapeutic, educational, artistic, practical, and political. It exposes the politics behind the exhibits, as well as the competition surrounding them between the different political movements operating in the camps at the time. By analyzing the works of the young students in particular, and based on memories and research, the author shows how art was often used as an ideological tool as well. The youngsters had been directed to express their dreams of a wishful future in Eretz Israel, rather than their traumatic memories and losses in the Holocaust. Sculptures of Zionist leaders, models of kibbutzim, and displays of agricultural tools, among others, were common, while horrors of the war were hardly expressed in these exhibitions. One exhibition, displayed by the Hashomer Hatzair youth movement, serves as a case study in this paper. This unique project, called ‘To-No’ (Hebrew initials for ‘Youth Production’) is presented here through its numerous artifacts preserved to this day in archives in Israel, and through later exhibitions of them in Cyprus (2014) and in Israel (2017), accompanied by catalogs and articles of scholarly interpretation. They carry a universal message on the power and influence of artwork and artifacts as a means of resilience and rehabilitation, and as a model of spiritual and cultural resistance.

Cooperation, Integration, and Assimilation: Abba Hillel Silver, Emanuel Neumann, the Lowdermilk Plan, and the Arab Question in the Forties

Abstract The growing power of the USA, of US Jewry, and of the US Zionist movement was a major factor that impacted Zionist policy during the 1940s. During this period, US Zionists sought to bring their influence to bear on the fundamental problems that the Zionist movement confronted during the war and thereafter. The Arab issue featured prominently in these efforts. While engaging with the questions of the relations between the Jews and the Arabs living in Palestine and with ways to make the Jewish state an integral part of the Middle East, the US Zionist leadership actively promoted the Lowdermilk Plan, which addressed the shortage of water in the region. US Zionist engagement with the Arab question signaled a fundamental change in the modes of operation of US Zionists and their desire to take an active and practical role in shaping the Jewish state and the Zionist movement. They were no longer content merely to provide material and political support to the Zionist movement and to the Jewish yishuv in Palestine.

Uncompromising Zionism in North Africa

ABSTRACT In July 1950, Moroccan Rabbi Yahya Ben Harosh wrote a letter to his students chastising those exposed to ultraOrthodox anti-Zionist influences for disparaging and denigrating Zionist leaders and the founders of the State of Israel. This article discusses the historical background to the letter, including the ideological foundation of the rabbi’s vigorous protest: from his position regarding the messianic concept to the religious affirmation of Zionism as a national-liberation movement. As such, Ben Harosh’s stimulating letter is not an isolated episode but a reflection of the longstanding religious and ideological antecedents of Zionism, dating back to the 16th century, which contained the main elements of the would-be Zionist endeavour. So much so that it is arguable that the 16th century set in motion a fundamental process worthy of being the departure point of Zionist historiography.

Satmar and Neturei Karta: Jews Against Zionism

Abstract Throughout history, many Jewish laymen and rabbis have objected to the collective return of the Jews to the Land of Israel, particularly if it was motivated by nationalistic rather than religious reasons. They did so for many reasons, the most persistent of which relied on a religious rationale. Anti-Zionist stands were voiced by both ends of the religious spectrum: the radical Reform on the one hand, and the ultra-Orthodox on the other. Following the establishment of the State of Israel, expressing anti-Zionist and anti-Israeli stands has become a routine practice among some Reform groups, as well as among several ultra-Orthodox communities among which Satmar is the most influential one. However, Neturei Karta’s position advocating Israel’s annihilation and their open support for Israel’s worst enemies has almost no parallel on the Reform side. During the twenty-first century, Neturei Karta’s anti-Zionist activities have become even more vehement. On top of the ordinary anti-Israel demonstrations side by side with supporters of Hamas, the PLO, or BDS, they have also participated in international conferences which promote Holocaust denial; visited Iran and met with its leaders who threaten to annihilate Israel; and rejected Israel’s raison d’être, claiming that Zionist leaders intentionally caused the Holocaust.

Cavalcade of Interpretations: The Kasztner train Through the Self-narratives of the Fugitives

The Kasztner train is one of the most well-known episodes of the Hungarian Holocaust. The action played a highly controversial role in the history of the Jewish self-rescue actions that elaborated in recent historiography. Instead of examining the negotiations between the SS and the Hungarian Zionist Rescue Committee, this study explores how the passengers of the Kasztner train narrated their controversial plight in their diaries, memoirs, and interviews. The inquiry seeks to uncover the history of the Kasztner action from a bottom-up perspective focusing on what was the role of news and rumors about the release in the narratives of the survivors. Hungarian Jewish families, i.e. the “Kasztner Jews” aspired to travel to Palestine, landed finally in Switzerland but directly left from Nazi-occupied Hungary to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. The majority of them were spending months in a special sector of the camp between June and December 1944. The circumstances in the Hungarian Camp where the inmates were treated as “hostages” by the Nazis were unusual compared to the other – ordinary – camp sectors of Bergen-Belsen or other concentration camps. Due to this special status, the “Kasztner Jews” were not in emergency considering they did not suffer from starvation, aggression, and illnesses that lead to death. However, they were held under Nazi jurisdiction and were imprisoned by the SS, and were not convinced about their long-awaited survival. The accounts written during the months spent in Bergen-Belsen shed light on the flow of information between prisoners in a particular situation. Attitudes to the news and interpretations were influenced by the ideological, religious, and personal background of the “Kasztner Jews”. The differences within the group determined the access to information: the Zionist leaders and their families were much more informed but everyone became part of the information network created by the participants to a certain degree. The uncertain plight and the vulnerability to the Nazis evolved ideas and visions of the possible future. The so-called rumor culture was a major phenomenon that featured everyday life. People who were consistently isolated from credible sources of information became both the creators and the consumers of the news. Besides the uncertainty, the moral ambiguity of Kasztner action was reflected in the participants’ narratives. Their attitudes towards the news were largely determined by the conclusions they drew about their own situation and future, which were influenced not only by their political orientation but also by their family situation. The condition of the prisoners from Auschwitz aroused sympathy and pity among them. On the other hand, the poor physical condition of these prisoners reinforced their privileged position. News of potential deportation from Budapest was also at the center of the discussions. Those who feared for their family members and relatives who were on the train and those who stayed in Budapest were trapped. When they heard the good news, they were glad that family members who stayed in Budapest were secure from deportation. At the same time, the distressing news reinforced their decision to leave the country. Diarists and memoirists have struggled to narrate all of this contradictions.

The Psychic Crypt in the Blue between Sky and Water

Palestine-Israel conflict broke out immediately post the partition of Palestine by United Nations in 1948 to fulfil the longstanding demand of Zionist leaders for a separate nation for Jewish community. The Zionist forces expelled native Palestinians from their residential areas during the mayhem of 1948 and transformed their identity to that of refugees within their own homeland. The conflict has had physical as well as psychological ramifications on the displaced native Palestinians and this psychological trauma of the Palestinians is transmitted passively across the generations as well. The research paper shall explore the novel The Blue between Sky and Water and trace the portrayal of intergenerational trauma of the Palestinians through its character.

The Hebrew Orient: Palestine in Jewish American Visual Culture, 1901–1938 by Jessica L. Carr

Reviewed by: The Hebrew Orient: Palestine in Jewish American Visual Culture, 1901–1938 by Jessica L. Carr Zohar Segev Jessica L. Carr. The Hebrew Orient: Palestine in Jewish American Visual Culture, 1901–1938. Albany: SUNY Press, 2020. 299 pp. The evolution of the Zionist movement under Herzl's leadership coincided with the mass migration of eastern European Jews to the United States that lasted from 1881 until the de facto closure of the United States borders to Jewish immigrants in 1924. American Zionist leaders worked out a unique interpretation of Zionism centered on the quest to legitimize Jewish life in the United States within the bounds of Zionism. They tried to build a Zionist movement that would provide the political, public, and ideological means for improving and bolstering the status of Jews in American immigrant society. Initially, American Zionism was an underfunded minority movement, but subsequently, most markedly following Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis's Zionist activity during World War I and the Balfour Declaration, it became one of the most dominant public forces among American Jews and played a major role in the dramatic events experienced by the Jewish people in the 1930s and 1940s. The founding fathers of American Zionism invested considerable intellectual effort into formulating an ideological amalgam that would reconcile Herzl's philosophy with the American version of Zionism. American Zionism did indeed travel a different path from that of its European counterpart. American Zionists generally did not stress migration to Palestine as a fundamental tenet of their ideology and practice, preferring instead to cultivate Zionism as a central component in the fabric of their lives within American society rather than as a means to promote migration to the Land of Israel. Jessica L. Carr's valuable and absorbing book provides a unique and fascinating contribution toward understanding the course of the development of American Zionism and toward illuminating the complex network of relationships that existed between the Zionist movement and the Jewish Yishuv in Palestine, [End Page 458] and between the State of Israel and the American Jewish community. Orientalism and the way in which it is reflected in a wide variety of pictures and images provides the framework for the book's argument. Carr's book begins with a comprehensive discussion of its theoretical background, focusing mainly on the general concept of Orientalism while highlighting its specifically American manifestations. The use of Orientalism as a central organizing theme defining the collection of pictures presented in the book enables the author to discuss the fundamental questions concerning the place of Zionism among American Jews in general and during the first half of the twentieth century in particular. Each chapter of the book is devoted to a discussion of images connected to an organization, event, or publication, such as The Zionist Organization of America, The National Federation of Temple Sisterhoods, The Jewish Encyclopedia, The Jewish Exhibit and Jewish Day at the 1933 World's Fair, and maternalism in Hadassah's "Propaganda." We learn from the book that Orientalism was harnessed by American Jewish opinion shapers as a means to mitigate the tension between the opposition of American Jews in general and the Reform movement in particular to the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine, and the Zionist movement, which aimed to do exactly that. The use of oriental rather than national elements was an indispensable tool in this process. Orientalism served to forge an affinity with the Land of Israel while eschewing nationalist imagery. The author correctly notes that Orientalism was also a crucial component of Christian imagery relating to the Land of Israel, and that this facilitated the use of these images in a Jewish context as well. Naturally, after the Balfour Declaration in 1917 and as the crisis of European Jewry deepened until its tragic culmination in the Holocaust, the Zionist and national elements in the pictures presented in the book came more to the fore, testifying to the growing importance of Zionism among American Jews. Throughout the book, Carr emphasizes the fact that Mizrahi Jews and Arab inhabitants of Palestine were excluded from the pictures published in the United States. Insofar as they did appear, they were portrayed as passive bystanders who...

The impact of the diaspora on family life in the Yishuv (1920–1948)

Rejection alongside an embrace characterized the Yishuv’s attitude toward the diaspora, as shall be evidenced by the test cases discussed in this article. The concept of the ‘negation of the diaspora’ served as a central axis around which the Zionist leadership sought to organize Jewish society in Mandatory Palestine. Its implementation, however, proved to be a challenge. The majority of the population were immigrants who brought with them the views and cultural norms of their countries of origin. This article examines the complex role the diaspora played in the shaping of the Yishuv via two test cases drawn from family-life experiences. Drawing on diverse primary sources, the first relates to a wedding controversy in the 1920s, the second to birth-rate issues in the 1930s and 1940s. Representing contrary social practices, the test cases illustrate the way in which, while the diaspora was denounced in theory, it continued to play a role in the daily life of the Yishuv.

Kształt polityki organizacji syjonistycznej we Lwowie po śmierci Leona Reicha (lata 1929–1934)

The year 1929 ended an important ten-year period of reorganisation and consolidation of the Zionist movement in Poland for the Zionists from Galicia and other districts. Undoubtedly, these years were the time of the greatest activity and development of the Zionists. Many factors contributed to the Zionist successes at that time; the possibility of free sociopolitical activity in a reborn Poland and the political abilities of Zionist leaders such as Leon Reich, Izaak Grünbaum or Ignacy Schwarzbart. However, the political strength of these leaders also became the weakness of the Zionist movement. The ambitions, tenacity and ruthless ideological struggle between Zionists became the main cause of the internal crisis of the Zionist organisation, also contributing to the decline in Zionist activity in the late 1920s. As a result, the Zionist movement was marginalised in the political life of the Second Polish Republic in the 1930s. The death of Leon Reich, one of the most prominent Zionist activists in post-war Poland, had an undeniable impact on the position of and the decline in the Zionist movement’s activity in Galicia and across the country. The politician’s death also added another dimension. Namely, the durability of the ‘Zion-Zion agreement’ concluded in Drohobycz in 1926 and the issue of the unification of the Zionist movement in Poland was questioned.

Migration, Discrimination and Assimilation in the State of Israel

Abstract The coalescence of Jews from across the world to form a unified Jewish nation-state has been the dream of many Jewish and Zionist leaders. With the gathering of immigrants after the State of Israel was established, the founders strived for a ‘fusion of exiles’ (mizug hagaluyot), where individual migrant cultural identities would assimilate to form a new Israeli identity that was predominantly European. Though the idea of a ‘New State’ appealed to Indian Jews, the promises that were made before they migrated from India did not materialise once they arrived in Israel, and they had to undergo several challenges, including discrimination based on colour and ethnicity, thus delaying their assimilation within Israeli society. This paper tries to understand the migration patterns of the Bene Israeli and Cochin Jewish communities and the prejudices enforced by the Israeli government and its agencies on them, which challenged their integration into mainstream Israeli society.

"Not a leader, nor an original thinker". A portrait of the Russian Jewish journalist Mikhail Berkhin (Benediktov)

Mikhail Berkhin (Benediktov) was one of the famous Russian and Russian-Jewish journalists, and a Zionist leader, and a loyal supporter of V. Jabotinsky. His life, activity, and literary production ​​have, however, not actually been studied. Without any exaggeration, we can say that Berkhin, as a person and the author of a rather voluminous journalistic heritage in different languages ​​(Russian, English, Hebrew, Yiddish), is little known to the modern reader. Experts have not yet tried to fully discover his depths or describe him neither from the point of view of his private biography, nor as a historical phenomenon. This article is, in fact, the first attempt of this kind to give a relatively complete overview of the currently known biographical material of Berkhin and his ideological and creative heritage.

From Mainstream to Social Media: The Kidnapped Yemeni Babies Affair in Israel and the Fight for Memory and Justice

This essay analyses the racial constructs and discursive webs that justified the separation of babies from their families, with reference to the Kidnapped Babies Affair in Israel. The discourse of hygiene and the view of Yemenite Jews as ‘Others,’ as articulated by David Ben-Gurion and other Ashkenazi Zionist leaders of Israel, are especially highlighted. The article contrasts mainstream-media framing practices with the dominance of new digital narratives. While the emergence of social media grants agency to previously silenced victims, I argue that the attitude of the Israeli state remains a major force in the ongoing Israeli official rejection of this story. Despite a breakthrough in the public perception of this narrative, the road to full transparency and justice remains elusive.

Imagining a 'Jewish atom bomb', constructing a scientific diaspora.

The nexus between transnational mobilization and Science and Technology Studies (STS) offers a productive platform for studying the formation of scientific activism, the influence of mobilization on scientific developments, and the ways science is used to achieve government goals. Integrating concepts from both sets of literature – particularly national sociotechnical imaginaries and socio-spatial positionality – this article explores how Dr Chaim Weizmann, a prominent chemist and a Zionist leader, attempted to construct and mobilize a ‘scientific diaspora’. Empirically, the article draws on new archival evidence, revealing the hitherto unknown early efforts of the Zionist movement to acquire nuclear reactor and utilize the Jewish involvement in the American nuclear project for political leverage abroad. Theoretically, rather than beginning the analysis with a scientific-diasporic network that was ready to be mobilized, we trace the selective and tailored practices employed by Weizmann to animate the Jewish connection among nuclear scientists and professionals.

Zionism and Pentecostalism: Black Zionist Roots in the AFM of SA through the Lens of Decoloniality

Contrary to literature that recognises American missionaries John G Lake and Thomas Hezmalhalch as cofounders of the Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) of South Africa, this article seeks to demonstrate the role played by the Black Zionist movement in preparing the foundation of the AFM of South Africa. This shall be done by demonstrating the role played by Wakkerstroom Congregation; the Central Tabernacle in Zion; the distinctiveness of the Black Zionist movement; and the distinct Black Zionist leaders in South Africa. I argue through the lens of decoloniality that there was already a group of Black Zionists fellowshipping at what is known as Wakkerstroom Congregation when John G Lake and Thomas Hezmalhalch arrived in South Africa. This congregation later gave birth to the AFM of South Africa in 1908 and other Zionist churches thereafter. The Black Zionist roots of the AFM discussed in this article have three implications. First, they suggest that the AFM is truly a Black and African church; hence, the church grows largely among Black people. Second, these roots are important for sustaining the growth of the AFM in the future. Last, the discussion challenges church historians to consider the Black Zionist roots when studying the foundation of the AFM.

Hebrew community organizations in the mixed cities of Mandatory Palestine and the creation of the Jewish national home

ABSTRACT This article focuses on the Jewish community committees established in the mixed cities of Mandatory Palestine and their role as an agent for instilling nationalistic consciousness and shaping political autonomy in the municipal domain. It examines the way the different committees operated organizationally and politically as well as their impact on the daily lives of the Jewish inhabitants. We look at the attempt of the local Zionist leaders to enlist the community committees to define the autonomous status of the Jews vis-à-vis the British Mandate and municipal government, and explore the use of instrumental nationalism to boost the sense of national and community belonging of the Jewish inhabitants, particularly the old-timers. The article pays special attention to welfare services and education as a tool for building nationalistic consciousness. Our comparative analysis shows that paradigms of Jewish settlement varied greatly and the Jewish communal framework in each city was unique. An important factor in the success of the committees was the economic and demographic expansion of the Zionist immigrants into existing urban centres, which paved the way for instilling Jewish nationalistic values through bureaucratic means.

Portrait of a Community: The Attitude of the Zionist Leadership toward the Absorption in the Land of Israel of the Jews of Thessaloniki, the “Mizrahi’im”, in contrast to the Jews of Germany, the “Ashkenazim”

Portrait of a Community: The Attitude of the Zionist Leadership toward the Absorption in the Land of Israel of the Jews of Thessaloniki, the “Mizrahi’im”, in contrast to the Jews of Germany, the “Ashkenazim”