Post-Zionism refers to the opinions of some
IsraelIsrael officially the State of Israel , is a developed state in Western Asia located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its...
i, diaspora
JewThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
s and others, particularly in academia, that
ZionismZionism is the international political movement that originally supported the reestablishment of a homeland for the Jewish People in Palestine. The area was the Jewish Biblical homeland, called the Land of Israel...
has fulfilled its ideological mission with the creation of modern State of Israel in 1948 and that Zionist ideology should therefore be considered to be at an end. The term is also used by
right-wing JewsThe term Jewish right refers to Jews who identify with or support right-wing or conservative causes. The Jewish right is not a monolithic designation...
to refer to the left wing of Israeli politics in light of the
Oslo AccordsThe Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles became a milestone toward the resolution of the Palestinian - Israeli conflict, one of the major continuing issues within the wider Arab-Israeli conflict...
.
Many Israeli historians consider "Canaanism" or "Pan-Semitism" to be an aberration beyond the bounds of Zionism. Self-identified post-Zionists differ on many important details, such as the status of the
Law of ReturnThe Law of Return is Israeli legislation, enacted in 1950, that gives Jews, those of Jewish ancestry, and their spouses the right to migrate to and settle in Israel and gain citizenship.-Law:...
. Critics tend to associate post-Zionism with
anti-ZionismAnti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism, and a term which has been used to describe several very different religious and political points of view, both historically and in current debates. All these points of view have in common some form of opposition to Zionism, but their diversity of motivation...
or
postmodernismPostmodernism literally means 'after the modernist movement'. While "modern" itself refers to something "related to the present", the movement of modernism and the following reaction of postmodernism are defined by a set of perspectives...
, both of which claims are strenuously denied by proponents.
Characteristic of the perceptions of Post-Zionism
Post-Zionism is a term associated with a variety of perceptions and different positions, behind which stands criticism of the core beliefs of Zionist groups. Post-Zionists raise many questions about Zionism and the state of Israel, among them:
- Is the state of Israel indeed a safe shelter for the Jewish nation? Are there any other places in the world in which the Jews' conditions are better from a historical point of view? (For example North America
North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
)
- Is it really possible to have both a Jewish state and a democracy
Democracy is a system of government in which either the actual governing is carried out by the people governed , or the power to do so is granted by them...
? Should Israel become a state of all its citizens?
- Is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict entirely black-and-white? Did Israel always maximize its efforts to obtain peace? Should all the blame for the continuation of the conflict fall on the Arab side?
Many of the aforementioned questions have also been raised by Zionists. However, the post-Zionists emphasize these points in their conception of Zionist history.
Post-Zionism in the sociological development framework
Transformations which took place in Israeli society in the 1980s and 1990s brought considerable changes to the values and political views which characterize an extensive part of this society. These changes have taken place in the economic field - liberalization of the Israeli economy and its opening to the global market, as well as in the breakage of the cultural
hegemonyHegemony is the preponderance of power, and the construction of consent from the powerless through cultural values.-In politics:...
of the labor movement, which existed up to that time. The prominent turning point occurred when the right-wing
LikudLikud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
party won the election of 1977 for the first time. This alone was a manifestation of the strengthening of the more extreme Zionist positions.
Several changes occurred in this period in tandem, including a reaction to the strengthening of the Zionist component in the government. Still, one should not conclude that the numerous changes occurred in tandem happened all because of one factor, and, of course, one should not relate them all to the phenomenon called "Post-Zionism".
The transformations in Israeli society which accompany the phenomenon of Post-Zionism are characterized in a number of fields:
Economic characteristics: Just as there are no unique economic characteristics to Zionism, which encompasses the full range of economical ideologies from
MarxismMarxism is the political philosophy and economic worldview based upon a materialist interpretation of history, a Marxist analysis of capitalism, a theory of social change, and an atheist view of human liberation derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels; three primary aspects of...
,
CommunismCommunism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general. Karl Marx posited that communism would be the final stage in human...
,
SyndicalismSyndicalism is a type of economic system proposed as a replacement for capitalism and state socialism which uses federations of collectivized trade unions. For adherents, labor unions are the potential means of both overcoming economic aristocracy and running society fairly in the interest of the...
to
CapitalismCapitalism is an economic and social system in which the means of production are privately controlled; labor, goods and capital are traded in a market; profits are distributed to owners or invested in technologies and industries; and wages are paid to labor...
, there are no unique economic characteristics to Post-Zionism, which also encompasses extreme left-wing components in addition to components that maintain a capitalist ideology. The capitalist political view of
Free marketA free market describes a market without economic intervention and regulation by government except to regulate against force or fraud. The terminology is used by economists and in popular culture. A free market requires protection of property rights, but no regulation, no subsidization, no single...
and the nurturing of
individualismIndividualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, or social outlook that stresses independence and self-reliance. Individualists promote the exercise of one's goals and desires, while opposing most external interference upon one's choices, whether by society, or any other group or...
was acceptable to great parts of the Zionist movement in Israel and outside Israel and one cannot say that it relates to the Post-Zionism movement only. Even in the
HistadrutThe Histadrut or HaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael is the Israeli trade union congress....
, the fort of the former socialism, there existed, in the period of the
YishuvYishuv or Ha-Yishuv Yishuv or Ha-Yishuv Yishuv or Ha-Yishuv (the Yishuv, , or the full term הישוב היהודי בארץ ישראל Hayishuv Hayehudi b'Eretz Yisrael ("The Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel") is the term used in Hebrew referring to the...
, a liberal party, which was not socialist. There still exists amongst Post-Zionist parties which retain capitalist objectives and political views an undermining of the socialist political views which typified the agenda of the Labor Party, which had a central place in the Zionist movement. The loss of the institutional collective and its historical foundations can be seen in the writings of a considerable part of the "new" sociologists and historians, who exhibit the most radical manifestation of this idea. The position of these communities is expressed in the
individualismIndividualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, or social outlook that stresses independence and self-reliance. Individualists promote the exercise of one's goals and desires, while opposing most external interference upon one's choices, whether by society, or any other group or...
which sees only the individual's material success as the economic objective of the person, and also in the economical globalization, which supports the opening of the economic system to the world economic system, in contrast with conserving an closed and planned on national economy.
Cultural characteristics: These years are characterized by the challenging of the existence of a cultural hegemony in Israel. Different groups undermined the perception of the
Melting potThe melting pot is an analogy for the way in which heterogeneous societies become more homogeneous, in which the ingredients in the pot are combined so as to develop a multi-ethnic society...
, by which only one Israeli culture existed and all the cultures which joined it had to shed their previous identities, and they began fighting to keep the unique cultural identities of the different communities, amongst which are
Mizrahi JewsMizrahi Jews or Mizrahim, , also referred to as Edot HaMizrach are Jews descended from the Jewish communities of the Middle East, Central Asia and the Caucasus. The term Mizrahi is used in Israel in the language of politics, media and some social scientists for Jews from the Arab world and...
, the immigrants from the former USSR,
the Israeli ArabsArab citizens of Israel is a phrase used by Israeli and other government and independent agencies to refer to Israeli citizens whose cultural and/or linguistic heritage, and ethnic identity, is Arab, including members of any religious tradition other than Jewish...
and more.
Political characteristics: Mainly after the
Oslo AccordsThe Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles became a milestone toward the resolution of the Palestinian - Israeli conflict, one of the major continuing issues within the wider Arab-Israeli conflict...
, a new movement started amongst a large section of left-wing Israelis who believe that the state of Israel should no longer declare itself to be a Jewish democratic state and should rather focus on the democratic aspects. This movement acts to generate greater
Social equalitySocial equality is a social state of affairs in which all people within a specific society or isolated group have the same status in a certain respect. At the very least, social equality includes equal rights under the law, such as security, voting rights, freedom of speech and assembly, and the...
in Israeli society.
Firstly, it is important to point out that the groups in Israeli society who are going through those processes are not necessarily Post-Zionist. Actually, only a minor percentage of those groups define themselves as such.
Secondly, there is not necessarily an overlap between the above three fields.
Benjamin NetanyahuBenjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu is the current Prime Minister of Israel. He previously held the same position from June 1996 to July 1999 and is currently the Chairman of the Likud Party....
, for example, might have more in common with several post-Zionists in his economic beliefs, but is actually more Zionist in all other aspects.
Post Zionism as an intellectual movement
Modern post-Zionism is closely associated with the
New HistoriansThe New Historians are a loosely-defined group of Israeli historians who have challenged traditional Israeli assumptions about Israeli history, including Israel's role in the Palestinian Exodus in 1948 and Arab willingness to discuss peace with Israel...
, a school of
historical revisionismWithin historiography, that is part of the academic field of history, historical revisionism is the reinterpretation of orthodox views on evidence, motivations, and decision-making processes surrounding a historical event...
which examines the history of Israel and Zionism in the light of declassified government documents, with an eye to uncovering events hitherto downplayed or suppressed by Zionist historians – especially those pertaining to the dispossession of the Palestinians, which the New Historians argue was central to the creation of the state of Israel.
The new
proclaimed Post-Zionists - are
intellectualAn intellectual is a person who uses his or her intelligence and analytical thinking, either in a professional or a personal capacity.-Terminology and endeavours:...
s, and mainly academic people, who consider themselves, or are considered by others to be, Post-Zionists. Critics (Neo-Zionists) of Post-Zionism argue that it undermines the Zionist Narrative against competing narratives (mainly the Palestinian one).
Although several intellectuals exist who consider themselves to be 'Post-Zionists', many other are not willing to adopt this epithet. The designation of Post-Zionist has been used in a derogatory manner to describe a person whose opinions take them outside the Zionist movement. Therefore, there aren't many intellectuals who are willing to officially refer to themselves as such.
In the beginning the 1990s there began to appear publicized articles by people of the Israeli academy which referred to themselves as Post-Zionists, and this was mostly in the aftermath of a considerable public discussion which took place for a long while on the issues surrounding the events of the
War of IndependenceThe 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known by Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation and by Palestinians as the Catastrophe , was the first in a series of wars fought between the newly declared State of Israel and its Arab neighbours in the long-running Arab-Israeli conflict.The war...
under the caption "
The New HistoriansThe New Historians are a loosely-defined group of Israeli historians who have challenged traditional Israeli assumptions about Israeli history, including Israel's role in the Palestinian Exodus in 1948 and Arab willingness to discuss peace with Israel...
". The public ambience in the aftermath of the
Oslo AccordsThe Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles became a milestone toward the resolution of the Palestinian - Israeli conflict, one of the major continuing issues within the wider Arab-Israeli conflict...
, which presumed that the Arab-Israeli conflict was the prelude to a conclusion, contributed even more to the development of this tendency. Since the start of the Second Intifada the ambience has changed tremendously, and since then, as many perceive, the Post-Zionistic tendency has been in retreat.
On the other hand, the Post Zionists historians were accused of adopting the Palestinian narrative without any doubts and in the demonization and de-legitimation of Israel and Zionism.
In contrast to the
Jewish statesee also Proposals for a Jewish stateThe terms "Jewish state" and "homeland of the Jewish people" are used to describe the Zionist movement and the State of Israel and refer to its status as a nation-state established in Palestine for Jews.-History:...
being the aim of political Zionism, many Post-Zionists advocate the evolution of Israel into a non-ideological, secular,
liberal democraticLiberal democracy is the dominant form of democracy in the 21st century. During the Cold War, liberal democracies were contrasted with the Communist People's Republics or "Popular Democracies", which claimed an alternative conception of democracy...
state which is officially neither Jewish nor
ArabArab people or Arabs are an ethnic group whose members identify along linguistic, cultural or genealogical grounds...
in character.
Criticism
Post-Zionism has been criticized as being a re-casting of Anti-Zionism, and has been thus labeled as deceiving terminology. Some right-wing Israelis have accused Jewish post-Zionists of being
self-hating JewSelf-hating Jew is a pejorative term used to allege that a Jewish person holds antisemitic beliefs. The concept gained widespread currency after Theodor Lessing's 1930 book Der Jüdische Selbsthass ; the term became "something of a key term of opprobrium in and beyond Cold War-era debates about...
s.
See also
- :Category:Post-Zionists, people who self-identify as proponents of Post-Zionism.
- Anti-Zionism
Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism, and a term which has been used to describe several very different religious and political points of view, both historically and in current debates. All these points of view have in common some form of opposition to Zionism, but their diversity of motivation...
- Neo-ZionismNeo-Zionism is a right-wing, nationalistic and religious movement that appeared in Israel following the Six Days War and capture of the occupied territories, which they consider the Land of Israel. It evolved parallel with, and in opposition to Post-Zionism...
- Historical revisionism
Within historiography, that is part of the academic field of history, historical revisionism is the reinterpretation of orthodox views on evidence, motivations, and decision-making processes surrounding a historical event...
- Critical theory
Critical theory is the examination and critique of society and culture, drawing from knowledge across the social sciences and humanities. The term has two quite different meanings with different origins and histories, one originating in social theory and the other in literary criticism...
- Deconstruction
Deconstruction is the name given by French philosopher Jacques Derrida to an approach which rigorously pursues the meaning of a text to the point of undoing the oppositions on which it is apparently founded, and to the point of showing that those foundations are irreducibly complex, unstable or ...
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