An International Workshop
The Elie Wiesel Center for Jewish Studies, Boston University
December 13-14, 2018
The phenomenon of a growing Israeli Diaspora — of Israeli citizens, both Jews and Arabs, who choose to live outside their homeland, has been receiving renewed scholarly attention in recent years. It is estimated that between half a million to one million Israelis, or about six to twelve percent of all Israeli citizens, now live in the diaspora.
For Israeli Jews, the decision to emigrate from Israel undermines fundamental tenets of Zionist-Israeli ideology, most conspicuously the “negation of the diaspora”. However, like other transnational diasporic communities, Israelis abroad do not sever ties with their native land but rather continue to maintain close relationships with it, significantly influencing Israeli politics, economy and culture.
This workshop will bring together scholars and artists of Global, Palestinian and Israeli diasporas who will examine the subject from diverse disciplinary, methodological and theoretical perspectives. Among the topics to be discussed are: the changing facets of the Palestinian Diaspora and Palestinian ‘internal refugees’; the American Jewish community’s reception of Soviet and Israeli Jewish immigrants; art created by transnational artists; economic aspects of transnational entrepreneurship; architecture and migrating urban spaces; Berlin’s diasporic communities.
For more information, please visit https://www.bu.edu/jewishstudies/calendar/events/israeli-palestinian-and-other-diasporas-in-comparative-perspectives/