Rabbi Yaakov Shapiro on the origins of Zionism

- While it’s true that some early Zionists were secular, the movement was diverse, including:
- Religious Zionists (e.g., Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalischer)
- Cultural Zionists (e.g., Ahad Ha’am)
- Labor Zionists and Revisionists
- Zionism did not “reproduce” antisemitism—it sought to escape it by creating a safe homeland for Jews who were being persecuted across Europe.

- After the creation of Israel in 1948, over 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab and Muslim-majority countries, including:
- Iraq, Egypt, Yemen, Syria, Libya, Morocco, and Iran
- Many of these communities had existed for over 2,000 years.
- Jews faced state-sanctioned persecution, including:
- Property confiscation
- Citizenship revocation
- Violence and pogroms (e.g., the 1941 Farhud in Iraq)

Where Did They Go?
- A majority of these Jews resettled in Israel, where they became a foundational part of Israeli society.
- This mass displacement is often overlooked in discussions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Sources:
- Foreign Policy Research Institute – Origins and Evolution of Zionism
- History Today – Herzl’s Troubled Dream
- Wikipedia – History of Zionism

Final Thought
Zionism was not a psychological reproduction of antisemitism—it was a political and cultural response to centuries of persecution. While critiques of Zionism are valid in political discourse, equating it with antisemitism or blaming it for antisemitism reverses cause and effect.