EQ: Why was the modern day country of Israel created?
SS7H2b. Explain the historical reasons for the establishment of the modern State of Israel in 1948; include the Jewish religious connection to the land, the Holocaust, Anti-Semitism, and Zionism in Europe.
Below are scenarios of 3 different Jewish people in the 1940s. Read the BACKGROUND then read each section. After reading, answer the question at the end as the person described in the scenario would answer it. Remember, while the question is the same for each scenario, the reasons in your answer will be different with each one.
BACKGROUND:
When WWI ended in 1918 lands controlled by the Ottoman Empire were partitioned into new countries. With nationalism strong, there was competition for the land and decisions about who should get the land were difficult to make. Three decades later as World War II was ending, there was still one area of land known as Palestine that remained unsettled. World leaders had to decide who should get this land.
Scenario 1: ZIONIST
Your family is Jewish and you live in the United States. Being Jewish is important to you in many ways. Your cultural traditions are a part of your everyday life. The way you dress, the food you eat and so much more set you apart from the majority of people in the U.S. Even though your family has lived in the U.S. for generations, you feel more connected to other Jews living in far away countries all over the world than you do with other Americans. More importantly, your faith in God is strong. You believe God gave Israel to your people as the Promised Land and it is rightfully yours. You believe Israel belongs to your people, the Jews. You also know the suffering the Jews in Europe just went through in the Holocaust and that many of your people were killed. The survivors’ homes were destroyed and they have no place to go. You really want to help those people get resettled in place where all Jews can be together in the land given to them by God.
1. What is a Zionist? What is the Promised Land?
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2. What did the Zionist encourage Jews around the world to do?
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3. How did Zionism help the Jews get the nation of Israel?
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Scenario 2: ANTI-SEMITIST You are a middle class person living in Europe. In nearby communities there are many Jews. You don’t know any of them well and you know little about their culture, but they just seems kind of strange to you. You don’t feel comfortable around them. In fact, honestly, you just don’t like them at all and you let that opinion be known. You don’t want them in your schools around your kids; you don’t want them in your neighborhoods; you don’t want them in your community. The Jews want their own country – their Promised Land – and you wish they had it… then you wouldn’t have to share your country with them. Now, as WWII is coming to an end, you and the rest of the world have learned what horrors the Jews faced at the hands of the Nazis in Germany during WWII. Even though you don’t like Jews you feel badly that so many died. If the UN gives Israel to the Jews you’ll both be happy!
1. What is an anti-Semitists?
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2. Why did the anti-Semitists encourage Jews to move to Israel?
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3. How did anti-Semitism help the Jews get the nation of Israel?
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Scenario 3: HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR
In Europe during WWII, millions of Jews were killed or placed into concentration camps by Hitler and his army. Your whole neighborhood was taken in the middle of the night and placed into a concentration camp where you had to work long hours and were given little food to eat. Your family was separated, and you did not get to see them in the concentration camp. When WWII ended and the Holocaust was over, you learned that your family was killed while in the concentration camp. Everything was taken from you during the Holocaust; you have no family, no home or belongings. You miss your family and friends and your greatest desire is to have a place to call home… a country in which you can feel safe and rebuild your community with other Jews. For many years the Zionists have wanted all Jews to move to the Promised Land and reclaim Palestine as a nation for the Jews. You want the UN to give Israel to the Jews so you can make it your new home.
1. What was the Holocaust?
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2. Why did Holocaust survivors want Israel?
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3. How did the Holocaust help the Jews get the nation of Israel?
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