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Last update - 12:43 21/02/2008 Rejoining the Diaspora - Israeli expatriates, a new kind of Jew By Ofri Ilani, Haaretz Correspondent Tags: Israel, Diaspora Every Passover, about 10 Israelis who had lived in Paris for some time would gather at Eyal Spielman's apartment in the Fourth Arrondissement. "Secular Israelis also want to feel some kind of connection to the sacred texts, or at least to their childhood," says Spielman, who had an apartment rental business in Paris and says he served as a linchpin of the Israeli community there. However, he feels these celebrations actually emphasized the Israelis' alienation and anomie. "It really is a poor man's feast. Several people, some of whom don't know one another, sit around and celebrate the holiday out of some undefined longing. These are people who have tried to assimilate in France, and some of them live with a French partner, but they definitely are not French, nor are they Israeli." For hundreds of years, as every child learns in the Israeli school system, the Jewish communities in the Diaspora preserved their distinct identity, even though they were minorities. Despite the growing number of mixed marriages, most Western countries have strong, united Jewish communities. However, in recent decades a new kind of Jew has appeared in Europe and the United States: Israeli expatriates. Advertisement Sixty years after the establishment of the state, Israel's population is growing, but the number of Israelis abroad is also growing. The Absorption Ministry estimates that some 700,000 Israelis and their children live abroad. However, it must be noted that this figure includes immigrants who stayed in Israel for a short time and then left. Losing touch Two recent studies have tried to characterize Israeli immigrant communities in the United States, primarily the new generation that was born in the United States or immigrated there at a young age. Above all, these studies attempt to examine whether this generation has maintained its Israeli or Jewish identity, or has adopted the local identity. The findings indicate that most people have distanced themselves from Israeli identity and culture. How many years abroad does it take for an Israeli to lose his identity? "The Israeli identity may not necessarily hold up over generations abroad," says Dr. Lilach Lev-Ari of Oranim College, who has researched the Israeli communities in France and Britain. "In contrast to the Jewish communities, the Israelis are not organized, and therefore they find it more difficult to maintain their identity. If there are connections, they are based on small groups of friends." "In Paris there is no Israeli community. This is a fiction," says Spielman, 38, who returned to Israel about a month ago after nine years in Paris. The immigration experience inspired his book "Rootless," published recently by Gvanim Publications. "These are individuals, each of whom knows four or five other Israelis. If they have children, they are pretty isolated [from other Israelis]. They are the children of immigrants, like other children of immigrants in Paris." Lev-Ari conducted her work at the Rappaport Center for Assimilation Research and Strengthening Jewish Vitality at Bar-Ilan University. This is the first study to focus on Israeli communities in Europe. Lev-Ari compared the first generation of Israeli immigrants who moved to Europe to the second, European-born generation. She also included the "first-and-a-half" generation, which was born in Israel but left as young children. She based her research on 126 questionnaires and interviews with 23 Israeli expatriates. The Israelis who immigrated as adults maintain their identity and their ties to Israel, to some extent, she says. "The first generation of Israelis abroad live in a very hermetic Israeli community, and their friends are Israelis abroad and here in Israel. Golders Green in London, for example, has a high concentration of Israelis, and they have several cafes and shops with Israeli names," she says. This group visits Israel often, and observes Israeli holidays like Independence Day. Some of them participate in film clubs, book clubs and business clubs. "It is hard to call Israeli community life very organized, and this is not really lively activity, but there is quite a lot of activity," she says. "However, the connection to the surrounding society is very loose, and their identity as English or French is very weak." In comparison, the second generation's way of life is quite different. "The young people are far more ambivalent in defining their identity. The Israeli element is strong, but not stronger than the local element. They are much more involved with their surroundings," she says. While the members of the first generation are almost all married to Israelis, 26 percent of the generation that has grown up abroad live with non-Jewish or half-Jewish partners. Thirty percent spend their leisure time with non-Jewish friends, as compared to 5 percent of the first generation. "Their perception of surrounding society is different," says Lev-Ari. "They are indeed interested in absorbing the culture at large, and they no longer see it a something alien. In many cases they live in non-Jewish neighborhoods, not only because they are cheaper. It is less important for them to live around Jews." Avoiding the Jews And indeed, one of the striking phenomena that characterizes Israeli communities abroad is their separation from veteran Jewish communities. Paradoxically, even Israelis who have chosen to leave Israel regard "Diaspora Jews" with reservations and sometimes even scorn. "The young Israelis are very put off by the Jewish communities," says Lev-Ari. "They find the community's customs odd." A 26-year-old student told her: "'In our age group, we do everything to avoid them. It exposes us to Diaspora Jewish traits that threaten me.'" The other Jews are perceived as too religious. Their clothing is out-of-date, and the young Israelis also feel their attitude toward Israeli is obsolete. "People have told me: 'They like old Israeli music - Yehoram Gaon, Yaffa Yarkoni. I am not part of that,'" says Lev-Ari. "The connection to the Jewish community is far from perfect," agrees Spielman. "I feel close to the Jews, but the difference is clear, the mentality is different and this sometimes leads the Israelis to hold negative attitudes. There are Jewish behaviors that Israelis consider ridiculous, and some refer to them as 'Yids' among themselves." A parallel study among Israelis in the United States last year found similar tendencies. "The longer Israelis stay in the United States, the weaker their connection to Israel," says Dr. Uzi Ravhon, of the Institute for Contemporary Jewry at Hebrew University, who conducted the study. "This is manifested in less familiarity with the social and political situation in Israel and less connection with relatives and friends in Israel," says Ravhon. "For the second generation that was born in the United States, or moved there at an early age, the connection is much weaker. They are much more fluent in English, and a larger percentage have American citizenship." "Israeli identity is very much based on defining yourself vis-a-vis an enemy," says Sarit, an Israeli who has been living in London for 10 years. "It could be that when Israelis move abroad they don't really have an enemy to face, so their identity also begins to disappear." More Jewish World news and features Bookmark to del.icio.us   Bread will abound J'lem court allows pizzerias, bakeries to sell leavened products during Passover. The looking glass A T.A. film festival tackles Israel's hardest issues from war to polygamy.   1.   The elitisism of Diaspora Jewish communities 15:53  |  AliciaYasmeen 21/02/08   2.   Israeli ex-pats 16:02  |  Ussishkin 21/02/08   3.   I`m a diaspora Jew 17:02  |  Sherman 21/02/08   4.   Israelihood in the diaspora 17:40  |  Gil Lavie 21/02/08   5.   Defining Oneself Vis A Vis An Enemy , Global Jihad 18:08  |  Joseph . E 21/02/08   6.   Israeli identity crisis/anti-identity 18:41  |  Leon Kalman 21/02/08   7.   Great solution for diaspora Israelis longing for community 18:46  |  DT 21/02/08   8.   israelis 18:48  |  Joe 21/02/08   9.   Stop complaining-no one asked you to come to UK, US or Israel 19:07  |  Fresh expat 21/02/08   10.   #4 19:17  |  leah 21/02/08   11.   Experience similar to Fresh Expat 19:24  |  SportsRabbi 21/02/08   12.   nothing unique here 19:32  |  Ron 21/02/08   13.   absence makes the heart grow founder 19:33  |  Still We Rise 21/02/08   14.   I am jew , a British jew not a Diaspora Jew 19:36  |  Proud Jew 21/02/08   15.   = 19:44  |  david 21/02/08   16.   To #11 - Sports Rabbi - what were you expecting? 19:48  |  Ron 21/02/08   17.   Just Like Jewish Immigrants of the Past 19:51  |  Wayne 21/02/08   18.   to #4 - israelihood 20:00  |  Ron 21/02/08   19.   reality 20:07  |  Dr Arthur Trotzky 21/02/08   20.   Who cares and all know that emigrants are the rotten apples 20:18  |  Nach 21/02/08   21.   the new Diaspora 20:29  |  justajew 21/02/08   22.   Israelis feel more at home and safe everywhere but Israel. 20:36  |  naro 21/02/08   23.   Lack of deep thinking 20:38  |  Yoni 21/02/08   24.   Join a Jewish Congregation 20:43  |  sg 21/02/08   25.   Israelis in the Diaspora 01:00  |  CHGODMK 22/02/08   26.   The most idealistic diaspora Jews make Aliya 03:56  |  Aryeh Herzig 22/02/08   27.   Aryeh Herzig 04:37  |  Eitan 22/02/08   28.   Ron in Ft. Lauderdale 05:30  |  CHGODMK 22/02/08   29.   Ron in FL 22:55  |  eve 22/02/08   30.   Israel-Galut 20:07  |  Rachel 23/02/08   31.   Jewish nationhood/ belonging is an artificial construct 21:44  |  diaspora babe 25/02/08   32.   Golders Green 23:40  |  Joseph 25/02/08   33.   Israelis and Jews 23:44  |  Ben Azai 25/02/08   34.   Diaspora Babe I 00:38  |  CHGODMK 26/02/08   35.   Diaspora Babe II 00:49  |  CHGODMK 26/02/08   36.   Ben Azai 00:50  |  CHGODMK 26/02/08   37.   Diaspora Israelis contribute to Jewish ignorance, indifference 16:25  |  Galuteus Maximus 04/04/08

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