The Jewish “East” and its Restricted Agencies

The Jewish "East" and its Restricted Agencies* Aviad Moreno (bio) and Tamir Karkason (bio) Keywords October 7, Israel, Hamas, Middle East and North Africa region (MENA), Ashkenazi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, Zionism, Jewish nationalism, colonialism, Palestinian nationalist narrative, Arab nationalism, Western imperialism, Postcolonialism INTRODUCTION In the aftermath of the October 7th 2023 bloodbath, which ignited pervasive academic discourse surrounding Israel and its position within the Middle East and North Africa region (hereafter: MENA), long-held dichotomies between "oppressing Westerners" and "oppressed Easterners" have resurfaced with renewed force. The current debate echoes longstanding discussions that utilize critical race theory to analyze Ashkenazi Jewish settlers from East and Central Europe as "White" while occasionally labeling Jews from Islamic lands as "Black."1 A prevalent argument among some historians of the Yishuv has held that Israel operates as a "settler-colonial" venture in which Ashkenazi Jews colonized Palestine, taking it from the indigenous Palestinians, and were consistently backed by British imperialism and, after 1948, by American influence.2 Over the decades, the power dynamics between Jews and Muslims, Israelis and other MENA nations and societies, have shifted. However, within the global paradigm that distinguishes oppressors from the oppressed, certain Islamic entities—like Iran and its global proxies such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Yemeni Houthis—are frequently conceived and depicted as marginalized "Eastern" underdogs, starkly contrasting with the depiction of the sovereign Jewish state, which is perceived as a distinct "Western" entity. This portrayal undermines the independent agency of these "Eastern" actors in determining their aspirations and historical trajectory, and implies limited responsibility for their actions and statements End Page 135 while they confront Western hegemonic powers. Instead, "Easterners" are predominantly portrayed as reactive elements navigating within hierarchical power structures imposed by the West, a dynamic that is seen primarily through the lens of resistance. Such terminologies and perpetuated analytical concepts, we argue, overlook significant aspects of the historical context that define the hierarchies between Jews and non-Jews within and outside of the contemporary context. To start, the founders of Israel, as Jews, were never categorized in racial terms as "White" (to say the least), but rather were perceived as a religious and ethnic subgroup, a distinct "other"—even considered "Oriental"—within the European context.3 But our essay goes well beyond that. We aim to highlight an even more substantial bias in the examination of the agency of MENA Jewish communities when viewed through such hierarchical lenses of a perceived East and West. This bias becomes most evident in the intersection of historical power dynamics between Muslims and Jews and the Jewish pursuit of self-determination and diaspora networks. PERPETUALLY "WESTERN" (?) In the mid-twentieth century, most centers of influence of world Jewry were based in the US, and this demographic composition, particularly amid the Cold War, significantly influenced Israel's self-perception as a Western-oriented entity, emphasizing the importance of building itself through ties with the US and the North American Jewish community. From the establishment of Israeli statehood, Israeli sociologists and anthropologists have routinely regarded Jewish immigrants from Asia and Africa as ethnic minorities within a predominantly European-oriented Zionist society. This perspective on the treatment of Mizrahi immigrants mirrored the approach observed in post-World War II immigrant societies of Western Europe and the Americas. Notably, Israeli scholars appear to have drawn influence from scholars in Western countries, who evinced a parallel tendency to advocate for a "melting-pot" policy toward immigrants from Asia and Africa, particularly those hailing from former colonies. Between 1948 and 1970, while most Jews were based in North America, Israel's Jewish population constituted only a fraction (gradually ranging from 5.7 to 20.4 percent) of the total world Jewish population.4 The majority of the Jewish state's population by that time originated from Eastern Europe End Page 136 and the MENA region. The latter formed the majority within Israel's population, reaching this status by the late 1960s (see Table 1). Click for larger view View full resolution Table 1. Division Between Mizrahim and Ashkenazim in Israeli Demography, 1949–19695 Despite these demographic realities, critical perspectives perpetually emphasized the persistent Zionist "colonial" hegemony, portraying Israel as...