Redefining the Converted Jewish Self: Race, Religion, and Israel's Bene Menashe

Abstract

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Under the cover of the kippah: on Jewish settlers, performance, and belonging in Israel/Palestine

“…One of the most common reasons for this act is a desire to evade the sectarian dimensions of the kippah , especially the crocheted kippah ’s association with religious Zionism or the settler identity (Almog & Zalcberg ). The removal and wearing of the kippah are therefore sartorial acts (Egorova ; Khabeer ; Tarlo ) that reorient the relations between public visibility, faith, and political affiliation.…”

“…Within the Israeli‐Palestinian context, the removal of the kippah remains a privilege of those who can effortlessly pass as Jews. Similarly to European Muslims who alter their sartorial practices to demonstrate their loyalty to the state, some non‐white Jewish migrants prefer to wear the kippah in order to demonstrate their belonging to the Israeli state and avoid being racialized as non‐Jews (Egorova ).…”

Politics in Color and Concrete: Socialist Materialities and the Middle Class in Hungary. Krisztina Fehérváry. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2013. 288 pp.

“…It also adds to a growing body of research that discusses issues in the racialization of the Mizrahi and Sephardi communities, both in Israel and in Europe (e.g., Arkin 2009;Egorova 2015;Hodes 2014). Chapter 1 considers the broader context of the Single Mothers' March by offering a sociopolitical typology of single mothers in Israel and a historical overview of Mizrahi women in mandatory Palestine and Israel.…”

Cruel Attachments: The Ritual Rehab of Child Molesters in Germany. John Borneman. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2015. 256 pp.

“…In discussing these issues, the book makes an important contribution to the literature, demonstrating that throughout the history of Israel, the olim (Jewish immigrants) of European descent have retained their privileged socioeconomic position and maintained claims to cultural superiority over communities coming from Asia and the Middle East. It also adds to a growing body of research that discusses issues in the racialization of the Mizrahi and Sephardi communities, both in Israel and in Europe (e.g., Arkin 2009;Egorova 2015;Hodes 2014).…”