Zion and America
The Jewish immigrants
who arrived in massive waves from Eastern
Europe beginning in the early 1880s brought
with them the ideas of “Hibbat Zion” (Love
of Zion), a movement whose principal aim
was the return of the Jewish people to their
ancient homeland. Political
Zionism gained strength in America
in 1914, when Louis
D. Brandeis accepted a leadership post
as chair of the Provisional Executive Committee
for General Zionist Affairs. The persistent
efforts of America's Zionist activists on
behalf of the establishment of a national
homeland for Jews in Palestine were rewarded
when the U.S. voted in favor of the United
Nations 1947 partition plan. A two-thirds
majority vote divided Palestine into two
independent states, one Jewish and one Arab.
On May 14, 1948, Israel declared
its independence and
minutes later President Harry
S Truman officially recognized the
new Jewish state.
Hebrew Lotto Game
This Hebrew Lotto game was
produced in Warsaw at
the beginning of the twentieth century, with
the emergence of political
Zionism and
the effort to revive
Hebrew as a language
of everyday life. Intended for children ages
four to seven, the game sought to teach them
to read Hebrew through play. The instructions
suggest that a teacher using these materials
could reinforce each lesson by weaving a
story or a discussion with the words learned
in the course of the game. Educational games
like this one, designed to teach as well
as to amuse, were played in American Zionist households
and schools.
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Hebrew
Lotto game.
Warsaw: ca. 1900.
Wood with paper game pieces.
Hebraic
Section |
President Truman Recognizes the State of
Israel
Just minutes after the State of Israel proclaimed
its independence on May 14, 1948, President
Truman officially recognized the new state.
Displayed here is the president's note recognizing
the State of Israel, which includes his handwritten
revisions.
The Vote for Partition
On November 29, 1947, the United
Nations General Assembly voted to partition Palestine
into two independent states--Jewish and Arab.
Displayed here is New York Congressman Emanuel
Celler's tally sheet, which he used to keep
track of the vote; it also includes his handwritten
notes quoting from the delegates' speeches.
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United
Nations Resolution on the Partition
of Palestine.
Typescript form.
Emanuel Celler Papers.
Manuscript Division |
“The Follies of Zionism”
In a series of published “open letters,” Rabbi
Jacob Voorsanger of San Francisco set out
his reasons for opposing political Zionism.
Voorsanger believed that Zionism was a mistaken
doctrine for Diaspora
Jewry because Jews
were fully already integrated into their
European and American surroundings. In addition,
he argued that Palestine was unsuitable as
a prospective homeland for Jews. “Look at
the geographical location of Palestine. Is
it not out of the way? What waterways does
it possess, has it ever possessed, to favor
the development of commerce? . . . If these
questions are asked, friend, the follies
of Zionism become at once apparent.”
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Jacob
Voorsanger (1852-1908).
Zionism.
Open Letters written by Reverend Dr.
Jacob Voorsanger of San Francisco,
Calif., to Honorable Simon Wolf, of
Washington, D.C., 1903-1904.
San Francisco: Lippman Printing Co., 1904.
General Collections |
Choosing Zion
Published in Newark, New Jersey, in 1893,
this early Zionist treatise castigates immigrants
who choose to make America their home rather
than Zion. The frontispiece illustration
shown here depicts a Jewish traveler turning
his back on a desolate Jerusalem and walking
towards a prosperous America.
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Raphael
Baer Raphael.
She'elat
Ha-Yehudim
[The Jewish Question].
Newark: Ephraim Deinard, 1893.
Hebraic
Section |
Zionism and Patriotism
A successful lawyer, Louis
D. Brandeis (1856-1941)
became active in the nascent American Zionist
movement on the eve of World
War I. In 1914,
he became chair of the Provisional Executive
Committee for General Zionist Affairs, the
leader of American Zionism. His participation
served to legitimize the movement in the
eyes of American Jewry and other Americans.
He believed strongly that Zionism and American
patriotism were compatible, a view expressed
in the pamphlet displayed here. In 1916,
Louis Brandeis became the Supreme Court's
first Jewish justice.
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Louis
D. Brandeis.
Zionism
and Patriotism.
New York: Federation of American Zionists, 1918.
General Collections |
“I See My Future as Very
Close to the Future of Israel”
In October and November
1948 — during Israel's War
of Independence — Leonard
Bernstein traveled to Israel, leading concerts
of the Israel
Philharmonic Orchestra in cities
and towns across the land. In a letter to
his parents, expressing feelings shared by
many American Jews, he wrote: “If my present
mood keeps up I see my future as very close
to the future of Israel. I can do so much
here — and it's the most important of all.” The
letter closes with a report on his visit
to a Yemenite synagogue — “I went to Kol-Nidrei
at a Yemenite synagogue, [and] got the thrill
of a life. The music makes Stravinsky look
pale.” Also
included was a brief note in Bernstein's
hand in rudimentary Hebrew reporting on his
health and itinerary.
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Leonard
Bernstein (1918-1990) to his parents
Jennie and Samuel.
Holograph letter (sent from Tel Aviv),
October 15, 1948.
Leonard Bernstein Collection.
Music Division |
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Concert
given with members of the Israeli
Philharmonic
for the armed forces in Beersheba, Israel],
November 20, 1948.
Gelatin silver print.
Leonard Bernstein Collection.
Music Division |
Leonard
Bernstein in rehearsal,
Israel, 1948.
Gelatin silver print.
Leonard Bernstein Collection.
Music Division |
Exodus
Based on the 1958 novel by Leon Uris, Exodus (1960)
introduced America to the story of the State
of Israel, turning its struggle for existence
into the stuff of Hollywood legends. Its
sympathetic portrayal of Israel's founding
greatly strengthened the identification of
America's Jewish community with the newly
established state.
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Saul
Bass (1920-1996).
Exodus, 1961.
Color offset lithograph poster.
Prints and Photographs
Division |
Sources: Library
of Congress
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