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F.Brauer
Posted January 26, 2009
Some clarifications
The book of Ariel Sabar My Father`s Paradise is quite illuminating in covering the exotic community of Kurdistani Jews. The interested reader who wants to know more about that community can find numerous video clips of Aramaic songs and wedding dances of Kurdish Jews on the You Tube.
In praising the book it has to be noticed, however, that some of the opinions expressed by the author demand further clarifications. First, Kurdistan was never a paradise (or a place of peaceful coexistence) for Jews, or anybody else, including Kurds. In 1915 Kurdistan became `killing fields¿ of the Armenian Holocaust. While the Jews were not robbed or killed, they had to pay a tribute to local Muslim aghas (chieftains) for the right to be left alone in peace. Second, Ariel Sabar is wrong in being critical of Zionists for their attempts to get the Jews out of Iraq in 1948-1951. Moving `Kurdim¿ to Israel saved their lives. One can only imagine what would happen to the Jewish community, if left to live under the regime of Saddam Hussein. Third, the attitude of Israeli government to Kurdistani Jews was not much different from that to the immigrants from Poland or Romania. They all were send upon arrival to the same maabarot (transition settlements), because in 1951 the State of Israel had no means to build proper housing for immigrants. By 1965, however, most of the people were moved to their own apartments, which while very small by American standards, were quite decent by the standards of the Third World (Israel was then a part of the Third world). Fourth, it is true that the Jews of Kurdistan as well as Yemen had a difficult time to adopt to the new life in Israel. Many of them were illiterate. But Yona Sabar got a good enough education in Israeli school to continue the studies in Hebrew University. He left for America not because of discrimination but because of much wider opportunities to continue his studies and get a job there. Israel in 1966 was (and still is) a very small place. Many (mainly Ashkenazi Jews) left for Europe or US for the same reason.
I suspect that, if only Mr Sabar could get his American glasses off and put on the Jewish ones, he could have been more focused, more forgiving and the story of his father¿s paradise would be even more enriching. Nevertheless, despite some drawbacks, a very good, book.3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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