“Most Jews, including an estimated half-million Israelis, continue to choose to live in diaspora. Yet there is no name for the ideology that backs up the political choice to do so” — or at least there wasn’t, until Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz coined the term “diasporism.”
Kaye/Kantrowitz’s “diasporism” challenges two key Zionist assumptions: “first, that living in diaspora is an unfortunate lapse, unchosen and without value;” and “second, that true home and safety are to be found in the nation state.”
Instead of conceiving of the Jewish diaspora as “a problem to be solved by indoctrinating the next generation about their REAL home,” the ideology of “diasporism” celebrates our multi-rootedness and our ethnic and cultural diversity. It affirms our “right to be, and to fight for justice, wherever we are,” opening up opportunities to join with other diasporic peoples who oppose reactionary nationalism and “see borders as lines to cross.”
For Kaye/Kantrowitz, if there is a problem with Jewish life in the US, it’s not our estrangement from Israel, but “the narrowly prescribed options… for expressing and nurturing Jewish identity,” i.e. Zionism, antisemitism, and the Holocaust. If you’re looking for a diasporic home to express and nurture a Jewish identity beyond these options, JVP might be a great community for you! Email info@jvp.org to get connected.
Art by Wendy Elisheva Somerson, Somatic Healer. You can buy this print and other beautiful work at etsy.com/shop/CorvidCrossingStudio.
All quotes in this post are from Kaye/Kantrowitz’s book “The Colors of Jews: Racial Politics and Radical Diasporism.”
Emi Palmor oversaw the unlawful efforts of the Israeli Ministry of Justice to remove 1000’s of…
⚠️ FACEBOOK, WE NEED TO TALK ⚠️
And by "we," we mean 29,000 people — and counting.
In just 1 week, we've surpassed our goal of 25,000 signers on a petition telling Facebook NOT to equate “Zionist” with “Jew” in its hate speech policy.
Let's get to 50,000! Sign here: http://facebookweneedtotalk.org/petition
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Facebook's policy change, proposed to Facebook by the Israeli government and some of its supporters, would too easily mischaracterize critical conversations about Zionists — and by extension, Zionism — as inherently antisemitic.
This is a counterproductive way to address a real and important problem. Those who fuel antisemitism online will continue doing so with or without the word “Zionist.” In fact, many antisemites — especially among white supremacists and evangelical Christian Zionists — explicitly support Zionism while engaging in speech and actions that dehumanize Jewish people.
So, treating “Zionist” as a proxy for “Jew” would only undermine efforts to dismantle real antisemitism, deprive Palestinians and Jews of a crucial venue for expressing political viewpoints to the world, and help the Israeli government avoid accountability for its violations of Palestinian rights.
Sign the petition: facebookweneedtotalk.org/petition
Learn more: facebookweneedtotalk.org/faq
"In his final days, Ezra tended to tell the friends who came to say their goodbyes that he “could have done much more.” Few activists have done as much as he has. But it is true that the struggle against injustice, to which Ezra dedicated his life, is long and bitter. We will continue to fight in his name, among many others."
Israel providing 5,000 vaccine doses to the over 5 million Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza is hardly reason to celebrate. While it is good news that Palestinian front line workers will get vaccines, it is far too little, way too late.
The disparity in vaccine roll out lays bare the system of medical apartheid and whose life gets valued by the Israeli government.
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