Product Information
Mention Israel and internal conflict, and most people immediately think of the seemingly insoluble Palestinian problem. However, as Rachel Shabi explains in this acclaimed book, there is another crucial division within Israeli society: between Ashkenazi Jews, whose families come from Europe, and Sephardic or Mizrahi Jews, who come from the Arab countries of the Middle East. Herself from an Iraqi Jewish family, Shabi explores the history of this relationship, tracing it back to the first days of the new state of Israel. In a society desperate to identify itself with Europe, immigrants who spoke Arabic and followed Middle Eastern customs were seen as inferior. Sixty years later, such prejudices are still in force. As Shabi demonstrates, Mizrahis are strikingly less successful than Ashkenazis, condemned, often, to substandard education, low-quality housing and mockery for their accents, tastes and lifestyles. Not only does this damage Mizrahi lives and hopes; it also reflects a wider Israeli rejection of the Middle East and its culture that makes it impossible for Israel ever to become integrated within its own region.Product Identifiers
PublisherYale University Press
ISBN-139780300167696
eBay Product ID (ePID)93315248
Product Key Features
Number of Pages320 Pages
LanguageEnglish
Publication NameNot the Enemy: Israel's Jews from Arab Lands
Publication Year2010
TypeTextbook
AuthorRachel Shabi
Subject AreaSocial Organisations
FormatPaperback
Dimensions
Item Height198 mm
Item Weight296 g
Additional Product Features
Country/Region of ManufactureUnited States
Title_AuthorRachel Shabi