I noted that changing your religion is a high price, but the point is that there is zero racial or ethnic bar to immigration to Israel, which is untrue of most countries. Other than Israel, I actually wonder if you can actually find any country which will automatically accept as a citizen anyone who follows a specific religious or political belief?
Sure some rabbis are racists, but that is a separate issue from whether Israeli immigration law as a racial or ethnic bar ideologically. The original charge was that on its face, Israel has an ideologically racist immigration policy. On its face, it does not, although like many countries with obstensibly non-racial criterion, there are informal racist barriers created. But that is hardly unique to Israel.
Nathan Newman nathan at newman.org http://www.nathannewman.org ----- Original Message ----- From: "Justin Schwartz" <jkschw at hotmail.com> To: <lbo-talk at lists.panix.com> Sent: Wednesday, August 01, 2001 5:45 PM Subject: Re: The nation of jews...
Of course it's utter crap to say that it's a liberal immigration policy because all have to do is change your religion. Hell, Nathan, if you want to be welcome in Saudi, as you have to do is change your religion! ANd if you want to go to Smith, nowadays you can geta cheap sex change in Thailand. I hear it's good and only costs about $7,000. Your insultinga nswer would be rubbish even if it were not true, which it is, that Jews make very hard to convert even if you want to. You have to find a rabbi whom the Israelius accept who would do it. My sister was turned down by a reform rabbi when she sought to do a naming ceremony with newly adopted daughter from China, because clearly a Chinese person can't be Jewish even if her mom is an echt Ashekenazi Jew from Russia, Poland, and Hungary. --jks
>
>In one sense, Israel has one of the most immigration policies on earth.
>Anyone willing to be converted by an orthodox rabbit can immigrate there,
>including your Palestinian friends.
>
>Most consider changing their religion too high a price for citizenship, but
>then Jews throughout history were forced to convert to gain full rights, as
>many people in Islamic societies have had to convert to gain full rights
>given to the majority religion. But the fact is that every Palestianian
>could return to Israel and get citizenship if they were willing to convert
>to Judaism, which might be an interesting mass strategy :)
>
>In that sense, Israel is not an ethnic state - since it does not require
>blood ties - but an ideological state in that you must pledge allegiance to
>a certain set of religious beliefs in order to immigrate there.
>
>But countries around the world have far more racist immigration rules than
>Israel, since many people would have no right to citizenship no matter what
>changes in beliefs they might swear to.
>
>Nathan Newman
>nathan at newman.org
>http://www.nathannewman.org
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "C. G. Estabrook" <galliher at alexia.lis.uiuc.edu>
>To: <lbo-talk at lists.panix.com>
>Sent: Wednesday, August 01, 2001 4:27 PM
>Subject: RE: The nation of jews...
>
>
>
>On Wed, 1 Aug 2001, Max Sawicky wrote:
>
> > They belong to Israel if they want to. Remember, it's not a
> > race/biology thing.
>
>
>Then why can't my friend Ahmed go to Israel under the Law of Return?
>
>(My friend Siobhan wants to Return, too.) --CGE
>
>
>
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