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Lebanese Jew
USA
18 Posts |
 Posted - 05/26/2005 : 4:24:39 PM
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1948: Jewish population of Lebanon = 20,000
2003: Fewer than 100
When Christian ruled Lebanon, Jews enjoyed relative toleration. In the mid-50’s, approximately 7,000 Jews lived in Beirut. As Jews in an Arab country, however, their position was never secure, and the majority left in 1967.
Fighting in the 1975-76 Muslim-Christian civil war swirled around the Jewish Quarter in Beirut, damaging many Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues. Most of the remaining 1,800 Lebanese Jews emigrated in 1976, fearing the growing Syrian presence in Lebanon would curtail their freedom of emigration. Most Jews went to Europe (particularly France), the United States, and Canada.
In the mid-1980's, Hezbollah kidnapped several prominent Jews from Beirut — most were leaders of what remained of the country's tiny Jewish community. Four of the Jews were later found murdered. Nearly all of the remaining Jews are in Beirut, where there is a committee that represents the community. Because of the current political situation, Jews are unable to openly practice Judaism.
In 2004, only 1 out of 5,000 Lebanese Jewish citizens registered to vote participated in the municipal elections. Virtually none of those registered remains in the country. The lone Jewish voter said that most of the community consists of old women.
Now that Syria has left Lebanon, I ask if I as a Lebanese can go back to my grandfather's house in Beirut, live there, work and practice my civil rights as a citizen. I hope the answer would be yes. |
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Bullocks
66 Posts |
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Lebanese Jew
USA
18 Posts |
Posted - 06/20/2005 : 12:40:55 AM
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Thank you Bullocks.
For a while I felt unwelcome in a Lebanese forum. No one replied to my post for about a month.
You see I am Lebanese and I hold a second nationality (European) and I never felt more aware of my Judaism except when I decided at some point last summer to visit Beirut and I was advised not to.
I am really not sure if one day will come when Lebanon will protect me as a citizen but I am surely glad to communicate with fellow Lebanese. Thank you again. |
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Bullocks
66 Posts |
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Jean
Lebanon
50 Posts |
Posted - 06/20/2005 : 11:25:49 AM
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Lebanese Jew,
Do not feel ignored; you are not alone. Soon the Christians in Lebanon will be following the Jews. The process has begun. |
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Truth Squad
114 Posts |
Posted - 06/21/2005 : 08:56:43 AM
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Lebanese Jew, your plight is similar to that of many of us. We were all displaced at one time or another or forced to move out of our homes, towns and country. I agree with you that the exodus of Lebanese Jews was proportionately larger, and this has to do with their geographical distribution near demarcation lines, the small number to start with, the Arab-Israeli conflict that in most part took an anti-semetic approach and was unable to differentiate between Israeli and non-Israeli Jew, lumping all jews in the category of the ennemy. That was wrong of the Arabs.
But so was the deafening silence of Arab Jews who never came out and sided with their countries against Israel's policies, even when those policies were aimed randomly at the Arab peoples and in many instances violated human rights.
The Arab Jews and the Arabs in Israel should have played the role of a catalyst for peace. They did not. Why I do not know but we can all speculate.
What do you think?
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Reformist
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2005 : 09:42:35 AM
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Truth Squad,
Many Arab Jews fled to Israel because they felt more loyal to Israel than they did to the Arab world.
If there are Jews who place Lebanon and Lebanon's national interest above all other interests, then so be it. Part of our national interest puts us in direct opposition with Israel, do they endorse this? Are they willing to accept this? Would they defend Lebanon if Israel invaded? Did they defend Lebanon when Israel invaded?
It's a matter of where the loyalty lies.
http://www.reformlebanon.com |
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Lebanese Jew
USA
18 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2005 : 12:58:46 PM
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Reformist,
I did not flee to Israel; my parents left Lebanon to England in the mid-70s because of the war. I understand your resentment of the state of Israel but I do not appreciate your totalitarian tone. To put all Jews in one category would be a big mistake. I am Lebanese, I am not an Israeli. I have nothing to do with the policies of Israel. But if you ask me to go to war against Israel, I tell you I will not. Not because I endorse Israeli policies but simply because I am a pacifist and a globalist. I do not believe in wars. I value human life above all, above national, religious or any other ideological affiliation?
Have you asked the same of every other Lebanese? Has every Christian and every Muslim in Lebanon gone to war against Israel when it invaded Lebanon? I think the answer is no. Many of them facilitated its invasion.
So why do you make it a litmus test for the Lebanese Jews? What kind of Lebanon do you want to build? |
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Bullocks
66 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2005 : 4:10:20 PM
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we don't need a war on israel - they're a superior military power.
However they aren't a friendly nation, and in fact they get a lot of tourism that we couldn't do without, and a lot of other stuff. In the region, Israel is economically opposed to us - and on that basis we have to compete with them.
And the other issue I have with Israel is that it's a nation claiming to be based on judaism. How could there be a democratic nation based on religion and ethnicity? I see the same faults in Israel of promoting ethnic belonging to a nation, the same way the Arab nation promotes relatedness and unity based on race and ethnic origin. And this is quite a backward ideology (which is in fact racist on both sides), which is also responsible for a lot of the problems between israel and palestine.
And I would like to emphasize the fact that Judaism and political Zionism are two different things, the latter being a very similar ideology to Arab nationalism if you discard the haphazardness of the Arab nation as a whole. So I don't understand how a totalitarian attitude in Israel would strive to become democratic; that's where Peace Now and the likes of leftists such as Uri Avneri are failing. If they want to solve the Israeli side of the problem, then they should start calling out for secularism - but till now I guess they have been barking up the wrong tree.
Lebanese Jews are fully Lebanese - I feel quite stupid saying this because even trying to explain this would be undermining our country (undermining our citizens would in fact undermine our country). I'm not going to explain more, I see no difference between myself and any other Lebanese individual no matter who or what they worshipped.
The only competition we could win against Israel would be an economic one, and the only way to achieve this would be by spreading education.
I also don't see any reason why we should drop our military defences, but it shouldn't be controlled by Hizballah (I'm opposed to political Shi'ism). If Hizballah is de-militarised and their weapons are used instead by a Lebanese government representative of the whole nation, and ONLY for defense purposes - then I would support that. This would only be for defense if someone would take the first move in provoking Lebanon.
But I don't see why we should drop our military defense against Israel or Syria or any other country that has any interest in interfering.
Anyway that's my opinion
"ßäÊ ÃÝÖá áæ ßÇäÊ ÇáãÞÇæãÉ æØäíÉ ÔÇãáÉ æáíÓÊ ÔíÚíÉ ÕÑÝÇð"
ÇáÓíÏ ãÍãÏ ÍÓä ÇáÃãíä |
Edited by - Bullocks on 06/22/2005 4:15:32 PM |
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Reformist
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2005 : 08:07:41 AM
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LebaneseJew,
You misread the context I was presenting. If Lebanon were INVADED by an enemy, would you defend your homeland even if that invader happened to be Israel?
In other words, would you stand up for Lebanon if Israel attacked?
http://www.reformlebanon.com |
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Lebanese Jew
USA
18 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2005 : 2:35:32 PM
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Can I be just a citizen without being involved in politics? Are all Lebanese involved in politics? Is the ability to defend the homeland a pre-requisite for citizenship in Lebanon?
As someone who comes from a Lebanese family with an historic heritage, I found it highly discriminatory to impose those requirements on me just because I happen to be jewish, when Lebanon has just nationalized hundreds of thousands of foreigners, many of them have no roots whatsoever there and they came there to work because they could not find work in neighboring countries. |
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Truth Squad
114 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2005 : 3:21:38 PM
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A citizen is a citizen regardless of religion or creed. As citizens we are all equal in duties and rights (not that we have so many rights in Lebanon).
So my friend, Lebanese Jew, you are welcome in your home-country anytime you wish to come. I recommend that you acquire a Lebanese passport if you do not have one and enter Lebanon as a citizen and I will be happy to pick you up at the airport, to offer you to stay at my house if you like and to show you the beauty of Lebanon and the hospitality of your people. We will talk about anything and anyone you like to talk about. I prefer to talk about beauty, poetry and music; I also like history, philosophy and economy. We can talk about Said Akl, Marcel Khalifeh, Edmond Safra, Ziad Rahbani, Moussa Sadr, Fairuz, Kamal Jumblat. But if you prefer we can talk also politics and discuss Rafic Hariri, Bachir Gemayyel, Walid Jumblat, Hassan Nasrallah and the Arab-Israeli conflicts.
I for one prefer to separate your rights as a citizen from the Arab-Israeli conflict. Your rights exist regardless. Therefore I will not discuss in this thread but your rights as a Lebanese citizen. All other political discussions ought to be brought up in a different thread.
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Reformist
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/24/2005 : 12:01:21 AM
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Lebanese Jew,
Defending your homeland is not "political", it is patriotic.
What is the point of demanding to be part of a country if you do not feel patriotic towards its well being?
http://www.reformlebanon.com |
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dana
Canada
27 Posts |
Posted - 06/27/2005 : 12:27:21 PM
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Reformist – many Arab Jews were made to feel like a minority in their own country. I think the question you’re directing to Lebanese Jew is not all that fair.
I look at myself and say, I’m Lebanese, but I’m also an Arab. In the same way, an Arab Jew could feel a sense of unity with all other Jews around the world, especially those who’ve been discriminated against. If someone was calling on war on another Arab country I feel the need to be patriotic as an “Arab”, but I wouldn’t call on war or go out there & advocate in any way. I’m not into politics, and I’m not one for war. All I’m saying is that, I don’t believe patriotism as a Lebanese would just be “for Lebanon”, but for all Arab nations in general. There are many Lebanese who say we’re “Phoenician” and not “Arabs” just to distinguish themselves from everyone else, and I disagree with that. That’s just my personal opinion. In fact, I have been labeled as “unpatriotic” and “not a true Lebanese” for feeling the way I do on the subject. Is that really fair?
Lebanese Jew – you should have every right to exercise your rights just as every other Lebanese citizen. In fact, as an “Arab”, you should have the right to be at liberty to walk into any other Arab country and be welcomed just like a Muslim or Christian would.
The whole Israel-Arab conflict is a country-country conflict, not a religious conflict. Certain groups (with both Jews and Arabs to blame) have turned the conflict into a Jewish-Arab or Jewish-Muslim conflict, which is really sad. When this sort of thing happens, how else do you expect people to react? They are being dismissed by their own home country (Arabia), and they are told come to Israel where we’ll protect you.
To still have Lebanese Jews, Iraqi Jews, Iranian Jews, and any other Arab Jews feel the way Lebanese Jew feels about his/her country, is an absolute blessing. You’re a proud Lebanese and it shows, and I hope you continue to advocate your perspective the way you are currently doing.
(Although a little outdated (published in 2001), “The Jews of Lebanon: Between Coexistance and Conflict” by Kirsten Schulze is one book I recommend on the subject).
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Lebanese Jew
USA
18 Posts |
Posted - 06/27/2005 : 8:19:38 PM
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Thank you Dana. I appreciate your kind and well-thought words.
I guess you can sympathize with the way I feel. I am Lebanese.
Whenever I think about it, I wonder whether the distinctive meaning it has for me is shared by others and tears rush to my eyes as if I am lonely in my feelings and my origins.
For me, being Lebanese is not just a nationality; it is more of a yearning to my origins, to the history of my family to who I am in a very nostalgic sense.
It is not the same though about me being an Arab or belonging to the Arab culture (although I still speak Arabic, Lebanese, fluently). You refer to the Arab world as a nation, but for me I do not see it this way; for many reasons:
1) my background and upbringing taught me that nations are a temporary and sometimes artificial segregation of peoples into groups based on misperceived similarities and differences;
2) as a globalist, I feel that national boundaries are collapsing against a new wave of cooperative diversity dictated largely by economical necessities. That does not mean that I deny Arab culture and its influence on me and on the peoples in the Middle East and beyond. But in my opinion this culture lacks the ethnic homogeneity (it is very diverse to its credit) and has not had the chance to rise to the status of a nation in the sense of organization or common interests (although these may have waxed and waned over time).
For me belonging to the Arab world is more similar to belonging to the Anglo-Saxon world or the Francophone world, but not to a nation like the American Nation (organization), the British Nation (organization), the Native American Nation (Ethnicity) or even today the European Nation (organization). I will be happy to read your reply in this regard.
I have not read the book by Schulze, but I will look for it. Thank you for the tip.
Reformist: I respect your sense of nationalism and the way you express it but I do not necessarily subscribe to it. Without meaning to be impolite or offensive, allow me to reply to you with a quote from Oscar Wilde on patriotism: "Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious." |
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Bullocks
66 Posts |
Posted - 06/28/2005 : 12:30:12 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by dana
Reformist – many Arab Jews were made to feel like a minority in their own country. I think the question you’re directing to Lebanese Jew is not all that fair.
I look at myself and say, I’m Lebanese, but I’m also an Arab. In the same way, an Arab Jew could feel a sense of unity with all other Jews around the world, especially those who’ve been discriminated against. If someone was calling on war on another Arab country I feel the need to be patriotic as an “Arab”, but I wouldn’t call on war or go out there & advocate in any way. I’m not into politics, and I’m not one for war. All I’m saying is that, I don’t believe patriotism as a Lebanese would just be “for Lebanon”, but for all Arab nations in general. There are many Lebanese who say we’re “Phoenician” and not “Arabs” just to distinguish themselves from everyone else, and I disagree with that. That’s just my personal opinion. In fact, I have been labeled as “unpatriotic” and “not a true Lebanese” for feeling the way I do on the subject. Is that really fair?
Lebanese Jew – you should have every right to exercise your rights just as every other Lebanese citizen. In fact, as an “Arab”, you should have the right to be at liberty to walk into any other Arab country and be welcomed just like a Muslim or Christian would.
The whole Israel-Arab conflict is a country-country conflict, not a religious conflict. Certain groups (with both Jews and Arabs to blame) have turned the conflict into a Jewish-Arab or Jewish-Muslim conflict, which is really sad. When this sort of thing happens, how else do you expect people to react? They are being dismissed by their own home country (Arabia), and they are told come to Israel where we’ll protect you.
To still have Lebanese Jews, Iraqi Jews, Iranian Jews, and any other Arab Jews feel the way Lebanese Jew feels about his/her country, is an absolute blessing. You’re a proud Lebanese and it shows, and I hope you continue to advocate your perspective the way you are currently doing.
(Although a little outdated (published in 2001), “The Jews of Lebanon: Between Coexistance and Conflict” by Kirsten Schulze is one book I recommend on the subject).
but you can't impose arabism on all other people in Lebanon - the choice of whether to be part of the arab world is totally that of personal choice. If you want people to respect your arabic identity, you should respect their non-arabic identity the same way. Identity is a personal decision; otherwise you'd be trespassing on their rights
"ßäÊ ÃÝÖá áæ ßÇäÊ ÇáãÞÇæãÉ æØäíÉ ÔÇãáÉ æáíÓÊ ÔíÚíÉ ÕÑÝÇð"
ÇáÓíÏ ãÍãÏ ÍÓä ÇáÃãíä |
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RIGHTS OF LEBANESE JEWS
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