Courageous Convictions:

Zionism and the State of Israel

In November 1918, the Germans capitulated to the allied powers by signing the Treaty of Versailles. World War I was finally and officially over. Ironically, not a single Allied soldier occupied any German territory whatsoever. Germany had lost the war while still occupying French territory. The actual cause of this irony was two-fold: first, the German people had, after four years of war, become disillusioned with the war itself and the hardships it brought. Second, the entry of the United States into the war on the side of Britain and France brought overwhelming material and manpower, and the German military leaders realized that its efforts were fruitless and that Germany could not possibly be victorious against such overwhelming Allied superiority. The Kaiser abdicated the throne, and a Democratic government was formed. The rumor that the German Army was "Stabbed in the Back" by the fledgling Democratic government was circulated as an explanation by certain right wing political groups. This rumor further claimed that the new Democratic regime was a part of a vast Jewish conspiracy to defeat Germany and dominate the world.

This "Stab in the back" rumor and rationalization of a Jewish conspiracy would be taken up and used extensively by future German dictator Adolf Hitler in his quest for the leadership of Germany. A scapegoat was needed to explain the defeat of the perceived invincible German armies and the humiliation of the Treaty of Versailles. The Jews were that scapegoat. Although a detailed discussion of Nazi Germany and World War II, including the horrors of the Holocaust, are far beyond the scope of this paper, it is important to point out that it is precisely this sort of anti-Semitic rhetoric and falsifications that contributed to the perpetuation of the Zionist movement and, eventually, to the birth of the state of Israel on May 14, 1948.

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I
The Beginnings of Zionism

The Zionist movement found its early roots in the middle of the 19^th century. It was a response to Anti-Semitism of Europe and also a response to the rise of nationalism as a result of the legacy of the French Revolution. The Jews had been discriminated against for centuries, being relegated, in some cases, to ghettos. France, after the French Revolution, emancipated the Jews, making them citizens. This equality, however, was an illusion, as they were still considered outcasts and non equal by many segments of the population.

The Jewish people had been dispersed among the nations of the world since 70 AD and the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans. Most historians consider this to be the beginning of the Diaspora-or, literally, the "Dispersion" of the Jews. Many Jews had attempted to assimilate into their host societies, while maintaining their Jewish heritage. The prayers of these Jews included a call for the return to Zion, the traditional homeland of the Jewish people. This land is what is today known as Palestine. Over the centuries, many orthodox and pious Jews did return to Palestine to live out their days and die in the Holy Land. These were individual decisions and not a part of a large scale movement.

In the mid 19^th century, several factors contributed to the gradual formation of the Zionist movement. Large scale pogroms under Tsarist Russia in the 1880’s led to the publication of a tract called Autoemancipation by Leon Pinsker in 1882. This tract essentially hypothesized that the Jews could never fully assimilate into a society and be accepted as equals. Therefore, the Jews must emancipate themselves and form their own nation. Pinsker did not specify exactly where this nation was to be, and put forth the ideas of both Argentina and Palestine. Autoemancipation did not generate any large scale organized Zionist political movement, but it did put forth the idea in a manner that would germinate in the minds of many Jews. The pogroms did help to cause a wave of Jewish emigration from Russia. Most of these Jews immigrated to the United States, but some moved to Palestine. ⁽¹⁾ These waves of early immigration to Palestine are considered to be the first of several "Aliyah", which is the term used for the waves of immigration over the next 60 years. The Aliyah will be discussed more fully later in this paper.

As the pogroms and discrimination continued throughout Europe, others began to form the concept of Zionism. Theodor Herzl was born in Budapest in 1860 to a semi-assimilated family. Herzl’s family moved to Vienna after the death of his younger sister Pauline, and in Vienna he was educated as a lawyer, but eventually became a journalist. As a journalist, Herzl was sent to Paris in 1894 to cover the Dreyfus Affair. Dreyfus, a Jewish naval captain in the French Navy, was accused of espionage. He was falsely convicted and exiled to Devil’s Island. Herzl was deeply affected by the Anti-Semitism that was demonstrated during the trial. The crowds outside chanting "Death to the Jews" convinced him that assimilation was not possible. At this time, Herzl had not read Pinsker’s Autoemancipation.

In 1896, Herzl wrote and published The Jewish State, a short work that outlined the formation of an independent and autonomous Jewish nation. Herzl’s vision included a Jewish nation and a Utopian, socialist society in which the Jewish people were self sufficient and recognized throughout the world as an independent nation "We are a people-One people" ⁽²⁾ Herzl, in The Jewish State, formulated a complete plan of action to be followed for the establishment of this state. He maintained that the Jewish people could never be fully assimilated into any society due to the level of Anti-Semitic feeling abounding in Europe. Herzl believed that the only viable solution was the founding of a Jewish State. As Max I. Dimont points out: "Zionism was not to be a trickle of individually subsidized Jews returning to Palestine, but a mass movement of farmers and workers, managers and entrepreneurs, scholars and intellectuals" ⁽³⁾ Herzl’s vision of Zionism was a political and secular movement, and not based on religious views.

One year after the publication of The Jewish State, Herzl was able to form the first Zionist Congress, which met in Basel in 1897. Most of the attendees were delegates of Eastern European Jews, mainly Russian, that were subject to the harshest of Anti-Semitic feelings. It was at these conferences that Herzl put forth the idea of a Jewish homeland in Uganda, but this was summarily rejected by the congress, the members of which insisted that the homeland be in historic Palestine.

Herzl found the reception of more assimilated Western European Jews to be lacking in enthusiasm for his Zionist movement. Overtures to wealthy Jews such as Baron von Rothschild met with no success. Rothschild had sponsored several Jewish immigration and agricultural projects to Palestine, but summarily rejected Herzl’s organized political Zionist movement. Thus, the first stirrings of the Zionist movement were made by the uneducated peasantry of eastern European, mainly Russian, Jews. Herzl, however, was undeterred, and continued his tireless work until his death in 1904. He arranged to meet with Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany concerning his movement, but this meeting came to nothing. Herzl also convened more meetings of the Zionist Congress, and plans were made to purchase land in Palestine for Jewish settlement. As time went on, more and more Jews began to take up the Zionist call. Immigrations into Palestine increased gradually, especially with a new wave of Russian pogroms in the early 20^th century.

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II

The Immigrations to Palestine

Historians and scholars typically categorize the waves of Jewish immigration to Palestine with a term called Aliyah", which means "ascent" or "going up". There are generally considered to be five distinct Aliyah, beginning in 1881. It is important to note, however, that exact dates and numbers of immigrants vary from source to source. ⁽⁴⁾

The First Aliyah is generally considered to last from about 1881 to 1904. Approximately 25,000 Jews immigrated to Palestine during this period, mainly fleeing pogroms in Tsarist Russia. The immigrants found life extremely difficult in Palestine, and many returned home. Some, however, did stay and established agriculture settlements. It was during the First Aliyah that Hebrew was once again revived and began to be commonly spoken. Another significant aspect of the First Aliyah is the writing and publication of The Jewish State by Theodor Herzl in 1896. Although Herzl’s ideas of an organized political movement to establish a Jewish homeland in Palestine were slow to take hold with European Jews, some did grasp the idea and began immigrating.

The Second Aliyah, from 1904 to 1914, is widely considered to be one of the most important of the five. It was during the Second Aliyah that the political structure and foundation of the Jewish State was laid. Future Israeli leaders such as David Ben-Gurion immigrated to Palestine during this period and in 1909 the first Jewish city, Tel Aviv, was founded. About 30,000 Jews immigrated to Palestine during this period. Some were fleeing a new wave of pogroms in Russia, while others had grasped the political Zionist movement outlined by Herzl.

The goals of the First Aliyah and the Second Aliyah had little in common. The First Aliyah was primarily a response to Anti-Semitic pogroms. The Second Aliyah embraced the up and coming political Zionism of Herzl. Each made separate and unique contributions to the Zionist movement as a whole, whether intentional or unintentional. The First Aliyah brought the use of Hebrew and agricultural settlements. The Second Aliyah brought the future political elite and the more organized goal of a Jewish homeland in Palestine.

Perhaps the most important event in the Zionist movement took place during World War I and actually between the First and Second Aliyah. This event was the issuance of the Balfour Declaration in 1917. This short document declared that the British Government supported the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. The document, however, is exceedingly vague and ambiguous and makes no assertions whatever concerning exactly how, when, or in what way a Jewish homeland would be established. In addition, it is vague on how the existing population was to be treated. It has been the subject of much controversy since its issuance nearly a century ago.

During the war, Dr. Chaim Weizmann, a Jewish chemist and ardent Zionist, assisted the British military with the development of chemical weapons for use against the Central Powers. Many consider the drafting and issuance of the Balfour Declaration as a form of payment for the Jewish war effort. Others point to the existing anti-Semitic feelings in Britain and consider the document an offer of an alternative to Jewish immigration to Britain. Regardless of the motives behind it, the Balfour Declaration remains the first written acknowledgement by a Great Power of the Zionist movement, and the Zionists took the Balfour Declaration as permission to begin mass and unlimited immigrations to Palestine, with little or no regard for the existing Arab inhabitants. Despite the controversy surrounding it, the Zionists referred repeatedly to the Balfour Declaration as written support for their movement and immigrations.

The Third Aliyah is generally dated from 1919 to 1923. During this time, most of the Jewish immigrants were Eastern European. About 35,000 of these Jews immigrated to Palestine during this time. It was during the Third Aliyah that the first major conflicts with the indigenous Arab inhabitants began to occur. As the Arabs began to realize the true eventual goals of the Zionists-the establishment of a Jewish homeland- they began to revolt. The Arabs viewed the Zionist intentions as imperialist in nature, and were alarmed at the rate of immigrations. Further exacerbating the situation was the call of many Jewish leaders for a boycott of Arab labor-insisting that the Utopian ideal of Zionism could only be achieved by their own labor.

Many Zionist immigrants believed that the Arab inhabitants would recognize the economic prosperity brought by the Zionists and welcome them. They were greatly mistaken. The Zionists did not take into consideration the traditional Muslim view of Jews as second class citizens and did not consider that the Arabs did not want to give up their lands to live in a nation in which the Arabs would be the minority. Further, the Zionist immigrants purchased large tracts of land from wealthy Arab landowners, and then immediately evicted the Arab peasant tenant farmers. Obviously, this created immense resentment among the landless Arabs.

The Fourth Aliyah, from 1924 to 1929 consisted mainly of Polish Jews. The British government instigated immigration quotas during this time and immigration to Palestine was more difficult and restricted. The British instigated the quotas in response to increasing Arab unrest in Palestine and pressure from other Arab nations. About 70,000 Jews came to Palestine during this period despite the Arab revolts and an increasing concern of Jewish safety in Palestine.

The Fifth Aliyah is generally considered to take place from 1929 to 1939. Most of the Zionist immigrants during this time were German Jews, especially after 1933 when the Nazi’s gained power in Germany. The vicious attitude of the Nazis toward the Jews has been fully documented elsewhere, and is not necessary to recount here. About 200,000 Jews immigrated to Palestine during the Fifth Aliyah. Until the outbreak of war in 1939, the Nazi government actually facilitated the immigrations to Palestine. Jewish property was often seized and confiscated in exchange for permission to immigrate. In effect, the Nazi’s ransomed the Jews and their property as a way of raising income.

The waves of immigration that are termed the Aliyah are a convenient way for scholars and historians to break down and categorize the immigration of Diaspora Jews to Palestine. The beginnings of the Aliyah did not encompass the political Zionism of Theodor Herzl, but were instead responses to the vicious anti-Semitism of Eastern Europe and Russia. As Herzl’s ideas took hold, however, more Zionist immigrants came to Palestine with the intention of founding a Utopian, socialist, Jewish homeland.

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III

The Modern State of Israel

The modern State of Israel came into existence on May 14, 1948. Within hours of the Israeli Declaration of Independence, both the United States and the Soviet Union diplomatically recognized the new nation. The very next day, Israel was invaded by Egypt, Syria, and Jordan with the intent of destroying the Jewish state. The Arabs lacked the military power and organization to defeat Israel and were humiliated.

The next war took place in 1967 and lasted six days. Known as "The Six Day War", Israel once again defeated the combined forces of Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Israel also took tracts of territory from the Arab nations. From Egypt, Israel took the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip. From Jordan, Israel took and occupied the West Bank, which constituted the West Bank of the Jordan River and included Jerusalem. From Syria, Israel took the Golan Heights. With the incorporation of these territories, Israel tripled her size and brought under Israeli direct control three quarter of a million Palestinians. Israel had no real desire to annex the territories and instead created a military occupation. The occupied territories were used as a buffer zone against the hostile nations of Egypt, Jordan and Syria.

After the Six Day War, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 242. This Resolution attempted to establish a basis for peace in the Arab-Israeli conflict. It included Israel giving up occupied territories in exchange for peace with its Arab neighbors. The main problem with the Resolution is that it did little to confront the underlying problem of the entire conflict: the Palestinian issue.

The Palestinian issue is at the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict. As more and more Jews immigrated to Palestine in the Aliyah, more and more Palestinians became displaced from their homes. Upon the Israeli Declaration of Independence of 1948, many more Palestinians fled into Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. The Israeli government, in most cases, refused to allow them to return. Appeals from the Palestinians to Western Democratic nations and to the United Nations fell on deaf ears. Support for Israel did not wane. While Palestinians languished in refugee camps in Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, Western support for Israel increased.

The horrid conditions of the Palestinians gave rise to the Palestinian Liberation Organization, an umbrella organization of various Palestinian groups. Eventually, Yasser Arafat would become and remain its leader. The PLO resorted to terror tactics of all sorts against the Israelis in order to have their voice heard. The Israeli’s in turn retaliated against PLO fighters throughout the occupied Gaza Strip and West bank, and sometimes making military excursions into Jordan and Lebanon. In 1993, Israeli and Palestinian began negotiating for a settlement that included Israel withdrawing its military forces from the occupied West bank and Gaza Strip. Thus far, only parts of the agreements have been implemented due to continued violence and Palestinian uprisings.

The last major war between Israel and its Arab neighbors took place in 1973. Known as the Yom Kippur War, Israel fared poorly at first but managed to gain the upper hand and repel, once again, the combined efforts of Egypt, Jordan and Syria. Intervention by both the United States and the Soviet Union eventually halted the Israeli advance and forced Israel to accept a cease-fire.

During the six decades of Israel’s existence, Israel has managed to make peace with both Egypt and Jordan. A Peace agreement was signed with Egypt in 1978, and a peace agreement with Jordan in 1994. The agreement with Egypt cost Egyptian President Anwar Sadat his life. He was assassinated by Islamic fundamentalists who vowed to never recognize Israel. Peace with Syria has yet to be established, with the issue of the Palestinians and the Israeli occupied Golan Heights being the main issues.

Regardless of the endless conflict, Israel as a nation has become a thriving country with a complex economy and high standard of living. It enjoys arts and cultural events, and has founded colleges and universities. Israel enjoys trade with many nations, although Israel, unlike most parts of the Middle East, has no petroleum reserves. The Israeli economy is based mainly in technology, industry and agriculture. The United States is a significant source of assistance and support, which has led in turn to U.S conflicts with many Arab nations.

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IV

Conclusion

It is impossible to write a work on Zionism and Israel without at least some discussion of the Holocaust and its effects. Detailed discussion of this event is far beyond the scope of this paper, but at least some discussion is necessary. The atrocities of the Holocaust have been well documented, and most believe in its existence. Many, however, erroneously believe that Israel was founded as a direct result of the Holocaust. Many people see a cause and effect relationship-with the Holocaust being the cause and the founding of Israel being the effect. This is simply not the case. Most historians agree that the Holocaust acted as an accelerant to the founding of Israel, and was not the direct cause. Indeed, Herzl envisioned a Jewish State nearly half a century before the Nazi conception and implementation of the Final Solution. What the Holocaust has seemed to do, however, is inject into Western thoughts and attitudes a level of support for Israel, regardless of Israel’s actions against the Palestinians. Support for Israel comes from many sources, including a Judeo-Christian religious aspect of the Jews being "God’s chosen people", but it is the Holocaust itself and the recounts of the horrid atrocities committed against the Jews by the Nazi’s that generates the sympathy for the Jews and in turn the support that Israel has enjoyed for the last six decades. This Christian support for Israel is known as Christian Zionism.

There has, however, been a gradual shift in attitudes. Many people are starting to question Israel’s heavy handed policies against the Palestinians. In addition, the Palestinians have refused to bow to Israeli domination and simply give up their lands. In the words of author Anton La Guardia:

Over the decades of struggle, the Palestinians have fought, rioted, hijacked and bombed their way back into Western conscience, from which they had been banished for decades. Remembrance of the Holocaust of the Jews has intensified in Europe and America, but there is also a realization that Palestinians need a country of their own. That country is not Lebanon or Jordan, but a piece of historic Palestine. ⁽⁵⁾

Another effect of the Holocaust was to instill into Israeli leaders a "survive or be exterminated" mentality. Israeli leaders in the aftermath of the Holocaust were militant in their determination of establishing and protecting the newly founded state, and it was the Palestinians that bore the brunt of this militant mentality. As the older generation dies or retires from public service, new generations of both Israeli and Palestinian leaders have the opportunity to make new ground in the settlement of the conflict. Israel has been a nation for nearly six decades, and the Jews no longer live under the threat of extermination. New Israeli leaders, born in Israel and without the horrid images of Auschwitz seared into their memories can become more flexible in their negotiations with the Palestinians for a Palestinian State. At the same time, Palestinian leaders must recognize Israel’s right to exist. Talk of the elimination of Israel must be stopped, and other Arab governments must be willing to exert pressure on the Palestinian fighters to be more flexible in their demands, and grant Israeli citizens safety and security by stopping the terrorist attacks and suicide bombings.

The Holocaust should never be forgotten, but it can clearly no longer be used as a defense by Israel. At the hands of Israel, the Palestinians have suffered their own Holocaust, although not one of total annihilation and extermination. As the decades have passed, many ardent supporters of Israel are coming to this conclusion. Some authors, historians and journalists compare the Israeli treatment of the Palestinians to Apartheid. In The Gun and the Olive Branch, author and journalist David Hirst writes:

"…The ruling elite were anxious to absorb as much territory as possible; but at the same time they were afraid, many of them, of having to absorb the Palestinians along with it. Not merely would that run counter to the whole idea of the Jewish State, it threatened to turn Israel into a typical colonial power in which the Jews would be to their Palestinians as the whites of South Africa are to their blacks" ⁽⁶⁾

The comparison of Apartheid to Israeli treatment of the Palestinians is becoming more and more common throughout both Europe and America, especially as racism and imperialism are considered more and more negative. More recently, in November, 2006, a conference was convened in Boston to discuss the issue of Israeli occupation and Palestinian rights. The conference was hosted by Northeastern University School of Law National Lawyers Guild Chapter and the Boston Coalition for Palestinian Rights (BCPR) at Northeastern University in Boston. Israel, in the 21^st century is coming under more and more pressure to give up land for a Palestinian state. This pressure not only comes from the world community, but also from an Israeli population that is becoming tired of the endless conflict.

The dream of a Jewish state was dragged into existence by the courageous convictions of Theodor Herzl and the early Zionists. It is the Palestinians that have paid the price of that dream, along with countless Israelis that have been killed in the innumerable conflicts since its inception. Perhaps, someday soon, there will be dragged into existence the dream of a Palestinian State; a Palestinian State that coexists in peace with Israel.

Robert V. Maxey

April 2007

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Footnotes

(1) Brenner- pages 14-15

(2) Herzl-page 2

(3) Dimont page 419

(4) For purposes of this paper, I have relied on the statistics given at the website http://www.zionism-israel.org. These appear to be the most reliable and complete statistics. Most sources give about the same statistics, with only slight variations, especially concerning the Fourth and Fifth Aliyah.

(5) La Guardia page 9

(6) Hirst, page 369

Works Cited

Brenner, Michael. Zionism:A Brief History. Marcus Weiner Publishers. Munchen. 2002

Dimont, Max A. Jews, God and History 2^nd Edition New York: Penguin-New American Library, 1962. Signet Classic 2004

Hirst, David. The Gun and the Olive Branch: The Roots Of Violence In the Middle East. Thunder’s Mouth Press/Nationbooks-Avalon Publishing Group 1977, 2003

Korey, William. Russian Anti-Semitism, Pamyat, and the Demonology of Zionism. Studies in Anti-Semitism, Vol. 2, Ed. Yehuda Bauer. Harwood Academic Publishers. Switzerland. 1955. Vidal Sassoon International Center For the Study of Anti-Semitism.

La Guardia, Anton, War Without End: Israelis, Palestinians, and the Struggle For a Promised Land. Thomas Dunne Books/St Martin’s Press New York 2001. First published in Great Britain by John Murray Publishers Limited under the title Holy Land, Unholy War: Israelis and Palestinians. First American Publication: May 2002

Sanders, Ronald. The High Walls of Jerusalem. Holt, Rinehart, and Winston. New York. 1983

Horton, Matt. Boston Conference Confronts Israeli Apartheid. Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, 87554917, Mar2007, Vol. 26, Issue2 http://huie.hsu.edu:2266/ehost/detail?vid=1&hid=2&sid=12fc69af-3f41-41eb-bf8a-99a76fdde388%40sessionmgr9 April 15, 2007

No Author Given. A Shared History, a Different Conclusion. Washington Post, The, 01908286, Mar 11, 2007. http://huie.hsu.edu:2266/ehost/detail?vid=1&hid=8&sid=ce50159f-787c-40c3-b47b-dcb19378cd7b%40sessionmgr8 April 15,2007

The Jewish Virtual Library. Mitchell G. Bard Ph.D. Executive Director 2007 American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise 24 April 2007 http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Zionism/zionism.html

Zionism-Israel.com. No Author or Editor Given. 25 April 2007. http://www.zionism-israel.com/zionism_history.htm. Adapted in part from Zionism - Definition and Brief History at MidEastWeb.org, copyright 2005 by MidEast Web.org.

Peart, Neil. "Vital Signs". Rush. Moving Pictures 1981 Polygram Records. Sound Recording

© 2007 by Robert V. Maxey. This article may be used for public, private, educational, and non commercial use only. If any part of this article is used please document with the following link: http://www.historyessentials.com/zionism.htm

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