Israel: History and People: Ethiopian Jews

On May 23, 1991 an aircraft supplied by the IAF was sent to rescue Ethiopian Jews who in a few hours were to be surrounded and massacred by rebel groups. (Rosenthal, 158) No one was allowed to bring any belongings because “every bundle meant another Jew couldn’t fit onto the plane. (Rosenthal, 158)” Planes were so crowded with people that some had to have seats removed and others had to carry 1000 passengers even though the capacity of the plane was only 500. During this rescue Israel managed to “smuggle 14,324 Ethiopian Jews” into Israel within thirty six hours. Many Israelis welcomed the refugees with opened arms by showering them with gifts, food, and tutoring them. For many this rescue was one of Israel’s “finest” moments. The Ethiopian Jews were overwhelmed with all that industrial Israel had to offer. Many had never seen everyday luxuries such as electricity and running water.

There are now about 100,000 Ethiopian Jews in

Israel

. The majority of the Ethiopian families are among the poorest economic groups in Israel. 72% live below the poverty line and 70% are illiterate in both their native language and in Hebrew. Both of these factors cause a high rate of unemployment of Ethiopian men and women in Israel. Another, notable fact is that more then half of these 100,000 immigrants have been living in Israel for less then ten years. The majority of Ethiopian Jews living in Israel are under the age of 18! In fact 60% if the population falls into this age range.

Another factor that contributes to the continuing poverty faced by the Ethiopian Jews is the high rate of high school dropouts. Drop out rates for Ethiopian students double that of Israeli Jews and the general population in Israel! These high drop out rates cause most of the Ethiopian families to remain in the same economic position. Because, “more then 75 percent of the Ethiopian Israelis came from rural, agrarian environments and have few skills marketable in a modern economy…resulting in severe inequalities between Ethiopian citizens and other citizens of Israel.” By not finishing school and learning the skills needed to become successful in modern Israel-many high school drop outs continue the cycle of poverty for themselves and their families.

This high rate of high school drop outs in the Ethiopian community does not mean that they are less intelligent or able to be educated then other Israeli children. In fact, “Ethiopian students often exhibit better memory skills, concentration, and patience then other students (Rosenthal, 170).” Some argue that the reason for the high drop out rate is because many of the children do not receive individualized tutoring and opportunities to attend afterschool programs that allow them to excel in computers, Hebrew, and English. All of these factors together cause Ethiopian Jew to be stuck in a persistent cycle of poverty, lack of education, and diminished opportunity. Nevertheless, more and more Ethiopian Jews are breaking free of this cycle and leading the way to ending this underprivileged life style. For instance, “in 1993, there were only 143 Ethiopian college students… By 2008, more then 3000 Ethiopian Israelis were [enrolled]! (Rosenthal, 172) These young Ethiopians are good examples for younger generations to see that anything can be accomplished. Many haven’t had good examples because, “most of their mothers and fathers have never been in a classroom. But once these kids get a taste of this, they want it. (Rosenthal, 173)” Hopefully, there will be an even greater increase in Ethiopian Jews enrolled in college in the future. And hopefully we will see a decline in drop out rates among high school students. These types of changes will allow Ethiopian Jews to integrate more into Israeli society and feel less like outsiders.

The information that I found through out Rosenthal’s book The Israelis was often identical to the information and statistics found on the websites. This led me to asses that most of the information that I found on Ethiopian Jews was reliable and consistent. However, I felt like Rosenthal had a more understanding and compassionate view of the situation regarding the Ethiopian Jews in Israel. Her writing had much more personal relevance then the website articles. By including personal stories from Ethiopian Jews it made the reader feel more compassion for their situation then the website articles which were just cold hard facts-making the Ethiopians seem uneducated and lazy. Rosenthal took a much more humanitarian approach when talking about the hardships faced by the Ethiopian Jews by talking about why they haven’t been able to improve their situation. The websites did not give much background on why there were so many drop outs, or why there was so many people living in poverty. Overall, I felt like the information was very reliable and that I learned a great deal about the Ethiopian Jews that immigrated to Israel-and challenges they are facing.