Jewish Indigeneity - Blog Posts

Yes, I’d be curious to hear other Ashkenazi views on this. I’ve heard a few Mizrahim say the opposite, they do *not* want to be called Arab, only Mizrahi, because it was the Arabs who pushed them out of their countries. Older Ashkenazim seem to be the same, but in a more “they aren’t allowing me to be part of them” generational trauma way instead of an “I’m too angry at them” generational trauma way (from what I can tell).

I was talking to my Holocaust studies teacher about this. When asked his ethnicity, her father will always say Jewish, never Polish, and will even say “No, I’m Jewish” if someone “corrects” him and brings up Poland. She (my teacher) said it’s really generational trauma. European citizens were suddenly told they weren’t European at all, only Jewish, and for some that stuck.

Still, I’m curious about what others think. I might be different because of my circumstances; my Jewish side comes from Russia, but that side has been in America for a long time (I think maybe my great-great-grandparents were born there, but it might even be farther back). My Polish (gentile) family members were in concentration camps and some were killed. So I guess I don’t have a strong “Jewish specific” connection to Europe, just in general. But, again, I know antisemitism exists everywhere, and I still plan on spending the majority of my life in Israel (once i perfect my Hebrew).

I can only respond as an Ashkenazi, I don’t know how everyone else feels, but I disagree. I am a Zionist. I feel a strong cultural and religious connection to the homeland. I even plan on permanently living in Israel when I’m older. But I’m also European. My great-grandparents were born in Poland and Italy, and I feel a connection to those places. Additionally, I feel a strong connection to both Hebrew and Yiddish, and even as a Zionist I don’t think Yiddish should be “phased out.” It’s a language of our European history and I like that.