"Spotlight On" the Ethiopian Jewish Community in Israel

Today we're bringing you some more information about the Israeli Ethiopian Jewish community we're raising money for, as well as some of their hardships and challenges. From www.fpf.org.il

Who are the Ethiopian Jews?

The Ethiopian Jews were discovered by Prof. Joseph Halevi in 1877. Prof. Halevi had heard about the "Falasha" (which means stranger), as the Ethiopian Jews were called, from manuscripts and first hand reports of men who had traveled in Ethiopia and met these Ethiopians who practiced the religion of the Jews. Because they were considered "falasha" (strangers) by other Ethiopians (Christian and Moslem), the Ethiopian Jews moved into the north of Ethiopia in the area around Lake Tana and the Simien Mountains - the area now known as Gondar Province - so that they could live in peace and practice their religion without persecution. Halevi lived with the Ethiopian Jews for a year and was most impress- ed with the way in which they observed the holidays - Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, and especially Passover, when the women destroyed all the dishes and pottery they had used all year and made new dishes and cooking pots from clay for the coming year. He also learned about the Ethiopian Jewish day of mourning called the "Sigd" which took place 50 days after Yom Kippur (like a second Yom Kippur). All the villagers would gather together at the highest point in the mountain around them and pray all day for G-d to bring them to Zion. For the Beta Israel, as the Ethiopian Jews are known, Zion was Jerusalem.

Halevi's student, Yankel Faitlovitch, followed in the footsteps of his teacher, and went to live among the Black Jews of Abyssinia (as Ethiopia was called then). He trained the young Ethiopian Jews to become teachers and leaders. One of his students, Yona Bogale, eventually became the leader of the Ethiopian Jewish community, and Yona and his family were among the Beta Israel who arrived in Israel during "Operation Moses". He died in 1987, much disappointed that so many Ethiopian Jews had been left behind and were suffering in Ethiopia.

How has the life of the Ethiopian Jews changed in Israel?

For many of the Ethiopian Jews, the absorption process has been very difficult. The hardest hit by the move to Israel are the elders of the community. Most of these seniors never learned to read or write in Ethiopia as they had been farmers who lived off the land with their families. Learning Hebrew, adjusting to life in a small, crowded apartment in the city where there is no way for them to work as farmers - the only life they knew - and just living among so many white people have been almost impossible hurdles for them to overcome. The young children go to school, speak Hebrew among themselves and Amharic (the Ethiopian language) only to their parents and grandparents, and consider themselves Israeli.

For those who arrived as teenagers or in their 20's, the transition was extremely difficult. Many had not had high school education, so it was decided by the Israeli government that these young people would be sent to boarding schools to accelerate the learning process. Unfortunately, the Minister of Education at that time was from one of Israel's religious parties, and he decided that these young people had to go to religious (parochial) boarding school, where the emphasis is on religious instruction and not on academic subjects. As a result, many of the high school graduates at that time were not properly prepared for college or university, many students dropped out or opted not to matriculate, nor had they received proper job training to make them employable.

Today, 10 years down the line, the situation is improving. Ethiopian high school students no longer have to go to boarding schools nor do they have to attend religious schools. More students are attending colleges and universities. Last June, the first Ethiopian doctor graduated from the Hebrew University, and the first Ethiopian female social worker graduated from Tel Aviv University. Two Ethiopian lawyers graduated from Haifa University and several Ethiopian teachers graduated from the Teacher's Seminary in Tivon and the Schools of Education at Haifa University and Bar Ilan University. Progress is being made, but it is slow as these students all have to depend on scholarships since their families can't afford to pay for their children's education. 90% of the Ethiopian families in Israel live below the poverty line, so it is a daily struggle for them to make ends meet.

What can Israelis learn from the Ethiopian community?

The most important lesson that the Ethiopian community can teach Israelis is tolerance. While there was euphoria in the country when the Ethiopians were first rescued and brought to Israel, the fact that the Ethiopians have had to take jobs as blue collar workers and menial laborers has led to them being considered low class by many Israelis. They suffer from discrimination because they are black and poorly educated. But Ethiopian families are close knit, and the whole Ethiopian community responds as it did in Ethiopia when one of their members dies or gets married. They still celebrate their "Sigd" by going to Jerusalem and holding their fast day in the hope that those Ethiopian Jews who are still waiting in Ethiopia to come and join their families in Israel. In spite of all their problems, they are optimistic that life for them and their children will improve. They are fiercely loyal to Israel and extremely proud of their sons who have served and died in the Israeli army.