To Be Or Not To Be Afraid of Term, ZIONISM

 Nadene Goldfoot                                         

Wonder woman is a Zionist.  The connection between Wonder Woman and Zionism stems entirely from the real-world casting of Israeli actress Gal Gadot as the superhero in the DC Extended Universe. Fictional character Diana of Themyscira predates modern Israel, but Gadot's public identity as an Israeli who served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has made the franchise a lightning rod for political debate.  She is standing in front of an exploding volcano, the Iranian country trying to wipe our her country.  Yes, I'm with Gadot in having a political debate.  

Being that I'm 92 years old, I am not cringing at the term, ZIONISM.  It's a belief of my era, something that brought me BACK  into the fold of my people. 

Yet I am reading that OTHERS have taken away it's soul  and have been demeaning it, crushing it into soil of their lands, making it verboten to use.  

Let me tell you again, about Zionism.  We'll start with Zionists from history: Max Brod (1884–1968), Zionist from 1912, Rachel Cohen-Kagan (1888–1982), , later Israeli politician Albert Einstein (1879–1955), Eldad (1910–1996) 

What was this movement that they were all hepped up about?

Zionism is a movement that supported making a home for Jewish people in the historic land of Israel. Famous historical figures include Theodor Herzl, who started modern political Zionism, and David Ben-Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel

Why did they want their own home?  Where were they already living?  They were a scattered people, a small group, found all over the world in little pockets,  many as 2nd class citizens, considered the scapegoat of the world, the wanderers who were recluses, not joining their churches.  They were objects of being picked on always, injured, killed in pogroms, and were the indigenous people from ancient Israel, of Judea, as we were Jews from there.  They were a people who could read and write and do math where others couldn't causing jealousy along with causing education, knowledge, and the aid to kings that needed their skill. They were blamed for the bad weather, whatever, ...enough.

Theodor Herzl: Writer and journalist who organized the first Zionist Congress in 1897.

Chaim Weizmann: Chemist and leader who helped get the 1917 Balfour Declaration and became Israel's first president.

David Ben-Gurion: Main founder and first prime minister of Israel.

Golda Meir: Early political pioneer and the fourth prime minister of Israel.

Louis Brandeis: American Supreme Court Justice and leader of US Zionism.

Henrietta Szold: Founder of Hadassah, the women's Zionist organization. 

Modern Pro-Israel Public Figures

Gal Gadot: Israeli actress who has openly supported Israel.

Jerry Seinfeld: American comedian who has visited and voiced support for Israel.

Gene Simmons: Musician known for vocal public support of Israel.

Mayim Bialik: Actress and author who frequently speaks about her Zionist views.  

The Zionism movement carried on into the 1920's with 

 the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann and Emir Faisal (later King of Syria and Iraq) signed the Faisal-Weizmann Agreement on January 3, 1919. The pact promoted Arab-Jewish cooperation for a future Arab state and a Jewish national home in Palestine, though it ultimately collapsed amid shifting colonial mandates.  

You could say:  Conflicting Visions: Faisal pursued a unified, independent Greater Syria, while Weizmann championed Jewish settlement aspirations in Palestine.

The Mandate Outcome: The conference deferred Middle East decisions, leading to the San Remo resolution where France took control of Syria and Britain took Palestine.

Zionism had been limited until the 19th century by Jews, but then, as times changed, so did their ideology.  Its form was religious and expressed most commonly in the traditional liturgy, pseudo-messianic movements, and in limited Aliyah (moving back to Israel).  Later on, late 19th Jews from Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, used Hibbat Zion movements, producing literature about it.  They held a big conference about it in 1897.  They realized and stated in writing that Jews are still a people, like Italians are a people, too many that our religion of Judaism would not continue if we all assimilated, which we refused to do;  the days of Hellenism long gone, and wished to retain their identity as a national community.  

It is normal to want to be from your own country.  We were forced out by the Romans and kept from returning on threat of our lives.  We tried assimilation;  it didn't work.  

Resource:

https://www.jns.org/news/u-s-news/scoop-avoid-saying-zionism-head-of-jewish-federations-comms-project-says-in-presentation-to-young-leaders

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Aleppo, Syria, Land Once filled With Jews

 Nadene Goldfoot

Alhalabi and Halabi; they are simply different ways of transliterating the same Arabic surname. Both indicate that a person or their ancestors originate from the city of Aleppo (known in Arabic as Halab) in Syria.  This is the surname of my friend, Omran,   I met him online before 2014.  I am Jewish.  Omran was raised by a stepmother.  Both parents were Muslims being he was born in Damascus, Syria. Aleppo was said to be the hub of Jewish business.  

Right now, Aleppo has been suffering with the presence of Terrorists.   Aleppo has a significant terrorist presence. The city and its surrounding region remain a volatile battleground involving multiple organizations designated as terrorist groups, including Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the PKK/YPG, and splinter factions of the Islamic State (ISIS), all of which have recently been involved in armed clashes, shelling, and suicide bombings.

Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, leader of the rebel group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), led a surprise offensive that captured Syria's second-largest city, Aleppo, in late 2024. Following the collapse of the Assad regime, he visited the historic Aleppo Citadel, where he was mobbed by supporters, and issued public assurances protecting the city's diverse communities.  

Aleppo has such an interesting history:  It was called by the Jews living there-Aram-Zobah, (found in Psalms 60-2) and its Jewish community is one of the oldest in the world.  Aleppo is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities, tracing its origins over 5,000 years to the 3rd millennium BCE. Located in northern Syria at a strategic crossroads of Silk Road trade routes, it has been governed by numerous empires, including the Amorites, Hittites, Romans, Byzantines, and Arabs. Aleppo was a major cult center for the storm god Hadad. Alexander the Great conquered the city in 333 BCE, and it subsequently flourished under Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine rule as a Macedonian colony named Beroea.

   Captured by Arab armies in 637 CE, Aleppo regained its ancient name and developed into a vibrant cultural and intellectual center. It was fiercely contested during the Crusades and later experienced immense prosperity under the Ayyubid and Mamluk dynasties, building the iconic Aleppo Citadel and the city's labyrinthine souks

Serving as a key western terminus on the historic Silk Road, Aleppo connected merchants from China, Persia, India, and Arabia with their European counterparts. The heart of this mercantile activity lies within the labyrinthine alleyways of the Al-Madina Souq, which historically housed over 4,000 shops. The market complex features dozens of khans (historic caravanserais) that originally served as trading houses, workshops, and resting places for traveling merchants.                                 

The Al-Hayyat Mosque was formerly a synagogue !  It dated from the 6th century.  Benjamin Tudela found 1,500 Jews there in 1170 CE, and later during the Middle Ages the community assumed some importance, being the home of many men of learning. 

Aleppo is home to a rich concentration of historic Islamic architecture, with the Ancient City of Aleppo housing numerous landmark structures. Prominent historic examples include the Great Mosque of Aleppo, the Mamluk-era Al-Otrosh Mosque, and the Ayyubid Al-Sultaniyeh Mosque, many of which are undergoing restoration following damage during the Syrian Civil War.

Spanish Jews settled there after 1492 and reinvigorated the community. 

Before 1914 there were 14,000 Jews living in Aleppo.  Emigration to the USA and England dwindled the population.  

After  the UN's decision of November 1947 to partition Palestine, anti-Jewish riots took place in Aleppo and many Jews again fled this city.  

By 1991 there were all of 400 Jews remaining in Aleppo.  with the main occupation trading and peddling. 

The Jewish Quarter still held many different synagogues, with the oldest, Mustaribah,  destroyed in 1947 riots that took place.  The main part of this synagogue dated back to the 4th century.  It was here a famous 10th century masoretic codex of the Bible was found, now finding a new home in Israel. 

 In fact, my friend's mother was from Jew Street in Damascus, but maybe originally from Aleppo.    

It's Not Easy Peasy Creating A Country

 

                  Squatters Shacks along the Willamette River , Portland, Oregon.  People sitting on land without paying for it:  1930

To have a country, land can't just fill up with squatters.  Otherwise, it that were true, there never would be a United States, or an Oregon.  What's a squatter?  Someone in our Oregon history, and I imagine in states as well.  

In the 1840s, Oregon Country was governed by an unregulated "Squatter Democracy". As the US and Britain contested the region, the foundational land laws were largely defined by squatters—settlers who simply occupied the land without legal title before preemption acts eventually allowed them to secure their claims.

      Bedouins in Palestine, Nomads with a permanent address: Deals had been made with the new Jewish government for the Bedouins of the south. Nomads are usually always on the move whereas squatters just sat there.  Bedouin refers to historically nomadic Arab tribes inhabiting the desert regions of the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. Derived from the Arabic word badawī (meaning "desert-dweller"), the term represents a traditional, pastoralist way of life rather than a distinct ethnic group. 

The land of Palestine did fill up with many squatters who traveled back and forth, especially on camels.  Most were from Syria and later were called Syrian Palestinians, not being Bedouins.   Other Arabs came to the land in 1880 when they saw Jews coming in and building Tel Aviv, etc.  They were paid with money and that enticed even more Arabs to join the crews. At that time they had no inducement to have their own state.  They were all from other countries close by.   

Historical Shifts: there was  time when the Brits invited Arabs into the country and kept Jews out--and this was after the Jewish Homeland was decided upon.  

 For decades in Oregon, removing unauthorized occupants required a slow, civil lawsuit known as ejectment. The rules were tightened significantly with Oregon House Bill 3522, which allowed landlords and homeowners to use standard eviction procedures to remove unauthorized occupants quickly. Many informal, unauthorized occupations were handled privately by landowners or frontier settlers rather than through formal courts. Throughout Oregon’s history, the handling of squatters has varied: Pioneer Era: In the mid-1800s, early settlements like Portland were practically "squatter's paradises" fueled by massive land claims and the Donation Land Act. In the early days, disputes were often settled by force or informal claim associations. In coming back to Eretz Yisrael, Jews found Arab squatters, like  there were squatters in Oregon.  There were a few land-owners who had people working the land, squatters and such.  The land-owners were only too happy to be overpaid for the land they were being taxed for and could not make a living on, and so this money relieved them and they headed for Damascus and Paris for the good life.  They had money!!!

             Over 3,000 years ago of the 11th century BCE or 1050 BCE, King Saul of the tribe of Benjamin ruled Israel-his enemy were the Philistines

The history of Israel goes back almost 4,000 years.  The first organized governing power in those days were kings,, and Israel's first king was Saul.  King David was 2nd,who ruled by 1010 BCE and died in 970 BCE.  He had been Saul's armor-bearer at age 25, and was a good friend of his son, Jonathan-and after showing his military strengths during a war with the Philistines, became husband of Saul's daughter, Michal.  King Solomon, David's son, died in 920 BCE which caused a rift or division of the 12 statehoods they had created with the Northern 10 being swept away after their king Hoshea of Israel died in 721 BCE.  The 2 southern states, Judea and Benjamin lost their last King Zedekiah in 586 BCE.  They united sometime later, those who found each other again, and remained with or without permission from other ruling parties,, but had filled Jerusalem at the turn of the millennium.  By 70 CE, the Romans were ruling and burned the city down, remaking it into a Roman town.  Jews were starved to death or slaughtered, with many escaping while others were caught and used as slaves.  Romans stole all the gold and silver out of the

Temple, forcing slaves to carry all back to Rome as shown on the Arch of Titus.  Thanks, Titus for having this for proof of the history.  Jews were told that returning to Jerusalem meant death, and so they scattered to the ends of the earth, near and far, suffering mostly in the hands of strangers.  Since some wound up in Rome, as prisoners, it was a good place to remain--and some did.  Others went to what later became Germany.  Later yet, Poland and others were inviting them to their country because it was known they could help the kings with finances, trading, etc, they could add, subtract, read and write and most people couldn't.  Then the countries turned on them, jealous, whatnot....and it was 1920.

WWI had started in 1914, and Jews had been promised to have the land they were kept away from for all those years...The Jewish Homeland.  Then Britain was offered such a deal they couldn't resist and gave away 80% of it to an Arabian prince who, not being first in line in his own homeland, wanted land with people to rule over, Prince Abdullah; who then got Transjordan.  The Jews, who had spent years since 2014 speaking and signing with heads of state, got the remaining 20%. And that's how Israel's birth development began once again.  They bought land.  They crossed all the T's and dotted all the i's and made it legal.  It went through all the channels of the United Nations of that day, the League of Nations besides the United Nations. 

Chaim Weizmann (1874-1952) , Israeli statesman, biochemist, and Zionist leader who served as president of the Zionist Organization and later as the first president of Israel had helped England win the war. In 1917, he brought about the Balfour Declaration.               

                                      

 He met with Emir Feisal; who agreed with him about Jews entering the land. Emir Feisal (Feisal, ibn Hussein)1885-1933) was the son of Sharif Hussein bin Ali of Mecca, the leader of the Arab Revolt against Turkey. He was a military commander who later became the King of Syria and Iraq.  By 1920 Weizmann mobilized resources for constructive work in Palestine. By 1929 there were Arab riots in the streets scared by another Arab who wanted more power,

Hajj Mohammed Amin el-Husseini (1893-1974), appointed mufti of Jerusalem and head of he Supreme Moslem Council, kind of over-powering Feisal.  Who chose him?  A Jewish man who was the only Jew in government then:  Sir Herbert Samuel.  He knew nothing about the Arabs, about the rioting going on against Jews.  Husseini assisted Hitler and was largely responsible for the liquidation of the Jews in the Moslem areas of Bosnia.  In 1946 he escaped to Egypt.  After 1948 he set p a short-lived "Palestine Government" in Gaza and later on in Cairo.                  

Avraham (Yair) Stern of the Stern Group (1907-1942) Nationalistic Defense leader the group, Irgun Tzevai Leumi; and left it because they didn't want to attack British acts against Jews in WWII.  He then formed underground group, Lohame Herut Israel who Brits called the Stern Gang who carried out acts of sabotage, killed by British police when only 35 years old (Britain held 30 year mandate over Palestine) while being arrested.  My 3rd cousin, Stanley, had became the group's Chief of Intelligence.  

                         Stanley Goldfoot with wife, children

Jews have been on the defense ever since.  Was it worth coming over to the Middle East from Eastern Europe?  Yes, spiritually;  culturally, it was the boost they needed to survive such hatred of them in the world.  Their candle, so to speak, WAS LIT with smelling the air, flowers,, orange blossoms, and knowing that this was where their ancestors lived and breathed and developed their morality.  And so this is the way we all feel upon making Aliyah to Israel today.   

Resource:

The New Standard Jewish Encyclopedia