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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Israel
Index
By the mid-1970s, economic grievances, corruption, and the
perceived haughtiness of the Labor elite led to a major shift in
the voting patterns of Oriental Jews (those of African or Asian
origin). During the first twenty years of Israel's existence,
Oriental Jews voted for the Labor Party mainly because the
Histadrut, the Jewish Agency, and other state institutions on which
they as new immigrants depended were dominated by Labor. But even
during the early years of the state, Labor's ideological blend of
secular-socialist Zionism conflicted sharply with the Oriental
Jews' cultural heritage, which tended to be more religious and
oriented toward a free market economy. As Oriental Jews became more
integrated into Israeli society, especially after the June 1967
War, resentment of Labor's cultural, political, and economic
hegemony increased. Most unacceptable to the Oriental Jews was the
hypocrisy of Labor slogans that continued to espouse egalitarianism
while Ashkenazim monopolized the political and economic reins of
power.
Despite Labor's frequent references to closing the AshkenaziOriental socioeconomic gap, the disparity of incomes between the
two groups actually widened. Between 1968 and 1971, Minister of
Finance Pinchas Sapir's program of encouraging foreign investment
and subsidizing private investment led to an economic boom; GNP
grew at 7 percent per year. Given the persistent dominance of Labor
institutions in the economy, however, this economic growth was not
evenly distributed. The kibbutzim, moshavim, and Histadrut
enterprises, along with private defense and housing contractors,
enriched themselves, while the majority of Oriental Jews, lacking
connections with the ruling Labor elite, saw their position
deteriorate. Furthermore, while Oriental Jews remained for the most
part in the urban slums, the government provided new European
immigrants with generous loans and new housing. This
dissatisfaction led to the growth of the first Oriental protest
movement--the Black Panthers--based in the Jerusalem slums in early
1971.
Oriental Jews, many of whom were forced to leave their homes in
the Arab states, also supported tougher measures against Israeli
Arabs and neighboring Arab states than the policies pursued by
Labor. Their ill feelings were buttressed by the widely held
perception that the establishment of an independent Palestinian
entity would oblige Oriental Jews to accept the menial jobs
performed by Arab laborers, as they had in the early years of the
state.
Data as of December 1988
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