Yom HaAtzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day) is widely celebrated outside of Israel. I remember going to school as a child and seeing Israeli flags everywhere, watching Israeli movies during class, and then singing “David Melech Yisrael” in our parade through the streets of Dallas. It was a day where everyone would dress up in blue and white (instead of our school uniform), eat falafel, and participate in Israeli dancing. We were proud Jews and proud of our country. And yet, we were content living 11,244 miles away.
Continue reading The Hypocrisy of Celebrating Yom Haatzmaut Outside of IsraelCategory Archives: Opinions
What is a “Successful” Aliyah?
It’s no secret to those in the Aliyah community that there is a large number of failed Aliyot- olim chadashim who move back to their country of origin. This phenomenon is known as yeridah, lit. descent. It is difficult to know the exact statistics of this phenomenon, as neither the government of Israel nor the Jewish Agency for Israel conduct population studies to investigate failed Aliyot. Regardless, we know it’s a big problem.
Continue reading What is a “Successful” Aliyah?