Ethiopian Israeli Youth Culture

In his paper, “The Story of the Ethiopian Jews”, Ethiopian archaeologist, anthropologist, and historian Dr. Yohannes Zeleke suggests that Judaism may have existed in Ethiopia since “the time of Abraham”, and that-- based on archaeological evidence-- these “Hebraic people” in Ethiopia appear to have “practiced the earliest forms of Judaism, which existed in the pre-Judaic Culture of early Israelites and pre-Talmudic Judaism” (Zeleke, 1-2).  Zeleke then traces the history of Jews in Ethiopia, and concludes by saying that “Ethiopian Jewry is in a precarious situation”, namely that many synagogues, burial grounds, and sacred places are currently unprotected (Zeleke, 5).  Much of the Ethiopian Jewry’s cultural heritage stands to be lost if such sites remain abandoned.  Zeleke suggests the immediate establishment of Jewish community centers in Addis Ababa and Gonder.   I came across the article while looking over the Beta Israel of North America (BINA) website.  BINA is a cultural foundation based in New York whose mission includes “fostering the continuity of the Ethiopian Jewish (Beta Israel) cultural heritage”.

BINA is a nonprofit organization and Dr. Zeleke is an Ethiopian anthropologist, so the information is most likely reliable.  Of course, when an organization relies on donations and an anthropologist worries about the fate of his own culture, there is obviously some vested interest in getting the message across.  Nevertheless, it seems a legitimate message.

Based on some internet research and the “Out of Africa” chapter in The Israelis, by Donna Rosenthal, it appears that the Ethiopian Jewish culture is in much need of the efforts of BINA, and other like-minded people and organizations.   Jewish culture in Ethiopia was first threatened by seventh century Coptic Christians who forbade Ethiopian Jews from owning land and ostracized them from society, calling them falasha (strangers) and accusing them of having Satanic powers (Rosenthal, 154).  Strangely, this unique Jewish culture is now indirectly threatened by Israel itself, as thousands of Ethiopians have made aliyah to the Holy Land and, through assimilation, stand to lose much of what distinguishes them as a people.  On the whole, it seems like this assimilation is a good thing:  it has provided Ethiopian immigrants a more peaceful life and opportunity for advancement in a modern society.  However, the challenges they face are undeniable.  In Rosenthal’s words, “Few Jews have sacrificed so much to emigrate.  And no group has arrived with more handicaps:  blacks in a white society, preindustrial villagers in an urbanized, postindustrial country.  The Israeli government invests roughly four times more for each Ethiopian than for other immigrants.” (157).

Batia Eyob, a researcher of Ethiopian Jews and an Ethiopian Jew herself, is quoted in Rosenthal’s book saying “In Ethiopia we didn’t have a youth crisis.  Everyone knew his role.  The roles are not clearly defined here” (162).  One organization working with at-risk Ethiopian youth is Friends by Nature.  They are affiliated with the Ethiopian Israeli advocacy NGO, Tebeka  and work directly with communities in Israel to keep at-risk, mainly Ethiopian Israeli youth out of trouble and on-track with school.

Their model is setting up a community which encourages volunteerism and provides positive role models.  Organization members become actual members of the community.  They are involved in leading a variety of extracurricular activities as well as providing homework assistance.  The website claims great success with this model.  At the bottom of the page there are bios of some of the organizations founders, which include native Israelis, and Ethiopian immigrants.  The members are both religious and secular.  The organization hopes to address the challenges faced by young Ethiopians in Israel, as well as strengthen the Ethiopian Israeli identity.


Of course, not all of the Ethiopian Israeli youth are at-risk.  Some are flourishing quite well.  The Israel Association for Ethiopian Jews outlines some of the Ethiopian Israeli community’s many successes, including the establishment of a Fullbright Scholarship program for outstanding Ethiopian Israeli students who, following an all expenses paid graduate program in the United States, would return to Israel to work in their areas of expertise.

It appears that Ethiopian Israeli youth have the prospect of a bright future, though they clearly face some unique and daunting challenges.