Abstract
In the 75 year history of the modern state of Israel, Jews have come from around the world to return to their historic homeland. Despite this “kibbutz galuyot” or ingathering of the exiles, the reality has not been as idyllic for every immigrant group. Starting with the Mizrahi immigration in the 1950s, immigrants faced differing policies depending on their background. Has Israel learned from its past mistakes to create best practices for successful integration?
In my paper, I will analyze two groups, the Soviets and Ethiopians, who both arrived in Israel in the 1990s, yet experienced vastly different treatments from the Israeli government. Since these groups came at the same point in Israeli history, they serve as a comparative study to see how Israeli policy changed since the start of the state.
I will measure the two integrations through: conversion policies, educational policies, geographic distribution, political representation, and military participation. These five factors are representative of the different areas of absorption into society. My methods include personal interviews, government documents, and academic writings.
I found that each group brought its own challenges with Soviets not wanting to abide by the religious institutions in Israel and Ethiopians coming with a much weaker educational background. While the Soviets generally received a neoliberal absorption model and Ethiopians more top down, each area of absorption tells a different story. Understanding how immigration policies were implemented has broad implications on Israeli national identity today and its continual evolvement.