The Ashkenazi Revolution

Israel in the year 1949 or 1950, and had pamphlets, explaining the historicbackground, and the cultural situation, of most Sephardo-Mizrahi peoples,been distributed among the Jews of the state, there is no doubt that the greatmajority of Ashkenazim would have rejected the Law of Return.Moreover: There is no doubt that even very many older Sephardo-Mizrahim would have rejected this law. However, Ben-Gurion forced hiswill upon the nation by using his great personal authority, and by takingadvantage of religious symbolism and organizational tools. This success ofBen-Gurion was complete only in outward appearance. The powers ofAshkenazi anger, which were founded upon the use of force in Ben-Gurion’s policy, went underground and they wait, like black pantherswaiting for their prey. Forced policies, in a democratic society, are alwaysdangerous. They bring about forces that such a public cannot digest or ruleover. Moreover: This step by Ben-Gurion greatly increased the severity ofthe acts of force that were perpetrated upon the Ashkenazi settlement in theLand of Israel. (The uprooting of Yiddish, and the establishment ofHebrew, was also an act of force, for Yiddish was a democratic language, alanguage that arose from the power of public will, while Hebrew was thelanguage of the intelligentsia, which was forced upon the people). TheAshkenazim remain today with a feeling of foreboding and fear. They seethat they have lost the majority, and that Ashkenazi superiority is in danger.It is still not clear to the Ashkenazim how much they must give up to theSephardo-Mizrahim and where the line in the sand must be. But if theSephardic hatred exceeds the excesses of incitement and minor riots, anddresses itself in larger dimensions, then the powers of Ashkenazi anger arelikely to break out of their underground hiding places, and to causedangerous outbursts. I do not say that the Law of Return, of Ben-Gurion,was a mistake. In principle it was correct, and the State had no otheralternative, even though it was necessary to exercise careful selectivity andto prevent the import, to the Land of Israel, of such a large percentage ofdefective people. But despite this, the great foundation of this law, as itpertains to Ashkenazim, was by force, which caused hidden feelings ofanger that threaten to explode.196