Studies Of The Third Wave by Dan A Jacobs Ellen F Paul

Author:Dan A Jacobs, Ellen F Paul [Dan A Jacobs, Ellen F Paul]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781000313475
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Published: 2019-07-17T00:00:00+00:00

Among the general population of Jews sampled by mail questionnaire* (with the significant proviso that those who have had contact with the Russians would be more likely to respond), we can conclude that while the Soviet Jews have, considering their small numbers, made their presence felt in the community, there has not been an extensive level of contact. Even among those at the JFS annual meeting, an elite and one would assume concerned group, a rather surprising 32 percent reported having had no personal contact with any Soviet Jews. It is no wonder, then, that the Russians themselves have experienced a sense of isolation.

How did the Americans assess the motivation of the Russians in leaving the Soviet Union? Here, we see significant differences depending upon the extent of contact a person had with the emigrés. Among the general population of Jews the predominant expectation was that the Russians were motivated principally by a desire to escape oppression (48%), or to attain freedom (23%), rather than to gain opportunities for their children (10%), or for economic reasons. The JFS group, however, was less likely to perceive the Russians as motivated by the desire to escape oppression (only 26%). For both groups, the more extensive the contact with Russians, the less likely that the Russians were viewed as desirous of escaping oppression or attaining freedom and the more likely that they were viewed as leaving for the sake of their children or for economic reasons. Thus, a process of disenchantment seemed to occur as the Americans came to know the Russians. They are seen less in stereotypical or ideological terms--as freedom fighters or victims of an oppressive regime--and more as ordinary people with normal motivations. This reaction complements that experienced by the case workers, while it departs from the self-assessment proffered by a significant number of the emigrés.

Interesting, also, is the extent to which a respondent's evaluation of the emigrés' motives influenced the evaluation of the balance of monies being spent between Russian and other community services. For those who saw the Russians as motivated by economic reasons, 45 percent of those who had an opinion felt that too much money had been spent on the Russians. In contrast, among those who viewed them as motivated by the desire to escape oppression or to attain freedom five times as many people selected "right balance" rather than "too much money."

Members of both United States groups projected a dire vision of the situation of Jews in the Soviet Union with 48 percent speculating that Jews were treated much worse than ordinary Soviet citizens, and 34 percent selecting the even more emphatic choice "persecuted and worsening." Here, the extent of contact with the Russians had no effect upon the response, which is easily explicable because the Russians themselves evaluate the condition of Soviet Jewry in similarly drastic terms.

The extent of communal awareness of the paucity of religious training among the emigrés is extremely high, with 64 percent of the Cincinnati Jews and 82 percent of the JFS group realizing that the Russians have had no or very little religious training.

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