Diversity in Israeli Demographics

          The demographics that make up Israeli society is quite diverse. For instance, Israeli Jews derive from Eastern European countries, North African and Arab countries, and even Ethiopia, Africa. Ethiopian Jews are recognized as the last tribe of Jews from the old world, because they have been disconnected from modern Judaism, such as the teachings of the Talmud.

Female Ethiopian Israeli Jew 

Nevertheless, “Whatever their origins, for centuries Ethiopian Jews worshipped according to the ancient rituals laid down in the Five Books of Moses (Torah) and older parts of the Bible (Prophets and the first half of Writings)” (Rosenthal, 163). During an era of migration through airlifts and treks from Ethiopia into Israel, the Ethiopians are sometimes ridiculed for their extent of Jewish observance from other Israelis questioning if they are “authentic Israelis.” According to Rosenthal, “No other groups of Israelis is as cut off from information as the Ethiopians: only one and a half hours of radio are broadcast in Amharic daily and only a half hour of Amharic television on Friday afternoons” (168). Some Ethiopian Israelis feel their government does not respect their community, because broadcasted information is rarely shown in Amharic while the majority is broadcasted in Hebrew. They are not considered “authentic Israelis,” because their culture is quite different, especially their language. Even the “Chief Rabbinate insists [Ethiopian Israelis] go through a symbolic conversion ceremony to remove all doubts about their Jewishness” (Rosenthal, 177).

Rabbis from the Chief Rabbinate

Because Ethiopian Jews practiced the earlier version of Judaism, the Chief Rabbinate is questioning their extent of Jewishness since the religion has evolved since the Torah and older parts of the Bible. This is astonishing, because there is no law in the Torah that questions the extent of one’s knowledge of Judaism to be considered a full Jew. Ethiopians have practiced Judaism by their own terms while living in Africa, however the Israeli government and other Israeli Jews are questioning their authenticity and are heavily lacking cultural competence.

             The news agency, The Times of Israel, wrote an article regarding the Ethiopian Israelis failure to elope by rabbis, because the rabbis cannot justify their Jewishness. This is a subtle act of discrimination, because other Israelis are not questioned about their Jewish authenticity like Ethiopian Israelis. The article focuses on the town of Petah Tivka, where Ethiopians from the Falash Mura community are Jews who were forced into Christian conversion during the 19^th century and now must undergo a complete conversion back to Judaism to wed through the Rabbinate (Tamar Pillegi). When couples show their conversion certificates to Judaism, the rabbis still reject their marriage and deny wedding them. The author, Pillegi, shares her point of view, regarding this denial by the rabbis as justifiable since most converts to Judaism are questioned about their commitment to Orthodox conversion. Through the state-funded rabbinical authorities, governmental policies do not respect the Ethiopian Israeli communities.

Ethiopian Israel Jewish Couple on Their Wedding Day

The author is very reliable in the information presented, because there are quotes from Rabbi Chuck Davidson, who is also an “independent activist working for the conversion reform in Israel” (Pillegi). The author also quotes citizens who are facing the discriminatory laws that deny them to wed. The article strongly agrees that this is a form of discrimination, because there are further examples about the Chief Rabbinate investigating the marriage denials in Petah Tivka. Nevertheless, the sufficient details about this town and community prove that this article is quite reliable. 

            Another community that is questioned about their authenticity of Israeli citizenship is the Druze community. The Times of Israel published an article, “Netanyahu vows to empower Druze: ‘You are part of us, we are part ofyou’” by Toi Staff. According to the book, The Israelis by Donna Rosenthal, she states that, “unlike most Palestinian Arabs, Druze did not become refugees and their villages and lands remained intact” while Palestinians fled during the 1948 War of Independence (Rosenthal, 308). The article conveys the Prime Minster of Israel, Netanyahu, as accepting the Druze into Israeli society without discrimination. On the other hand, “Druze leaders have lambasted the legislation as creating official discrimination between Jews and non-Jews” after Israel was declared the official nation-state for Jewish peoples (Times of Israel Staff -Toi Staff).

Druze IDF Soldiers

Many non-Jews of Israel have served in the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) and assimilated into Israel culture and the Hebrew language. As Israel become a more diverse society, the non-Jewish population feel discriminated against when policies and statements are made that focus solely on the Jewish population. Druze are authentic Israelis, because “their religion teaches that they must be loyal to the country in which they live” (Rosenthal, 304). The authors viewpoint is in favor of the Druze community being authentically Israeli, however the author suggests they are a minority group among a majority Jewish population. The article is very reliable, because it uses direct quotes from the Prime Minister, Netanyahu. The article also provides strong statistics regarding Druze infrastructure development compared to Jewish towns. This evidence also expresses the author’s viewpoint, because it is justifying the Druze minority as being below Jewish development. Nevertheless, the Druze population have contributed to the Israeli economy and therefore stand as Israeli citizens despite their Arab identities.