This book, based upon questionnaires addressed to contemporary European Jews residing in three urban Jewish communities, Paris, Brussels and Antwerp, presents findings and discussions of interviews conducted with Jewish residents: More than half native-born and the rest - immigrants. The three communities share several traits in common, yet each is distinct in its Jewish residents’ patterns of integration, acculturation strategies as well as ethnic identity vis-a-vis the non-Jewish majority, and differ between themselves.
Most importantly, contemporary interactions and inter-relations are also affected by the history of the two nations, French and Belgian, with regard to their Jewish communities. Different policy trajectories of France and Belgium, as well as those in the three cities, accompanied by characteristics of local non-Jewish native-born and immigrants, affect majority-minorities inter-relations, including local Jews.
The majority of contemporary world Jewry resides in western countries, due to the West’s rather hospitable socioeconomic and political circumstances vis-á-vis Jewish presence. Jews in western nations constitute a privileged ethnic minority group. Culturally, professionally and economically they integrate well, even if they remain a distinct ethno-cultural group. However, as such, they are particularly vulnerable to attacks from the underprivileged, who direct their resentment against mainstream society towards Jews.
In the last few decades most European Jews can be defined as ‘native-born’ that perceive themselves as a distinct national group, which became a minority due to political and social changes in their homeland. Jewish immigrants in Europe comprise more than a quarter of the Jewish population. Jews world-wide prefer to live in large cities that provide opportunities for economic, social and cultural mobility. Within these cities many Jews tend to concentrate in neighborhoods that are appropriate to their socioeconomic status, provide nearby employment opportunities, facilitate social mobility and offer religious services and Jewish organizations.
More than half of French Jewry reside in Paris and almost all Belgian Jews dwell equally in the two largest cities in Belgium, Brussels and Antwerp. The three cities are characterized by their ethnically diverse Jewish communities: Secular, religious, ultra-Orthodox, Ashkenazi (parents’ origin is from Europe or America), Sephardi (parents’ origin is from Africa or Asia), native-born and immigrant. Furthermore, Paris is a metropolis and a ‘world city,’ i.e. a global center of business, politics, culture and technology that has attracted for decades many Jewish migrants, particularly from the Middle East. Brussels is also a world city and serves as the center of the European Union. Due to lack of one homogeneous national Belgian population in the city, Brussels, as the center of the European Union, with its EU institutions is considered cosmopolitan, and attracts many migrants from all over the world, including Israel. Antwerp is unique due to its changing scope and structure of Jewish population, mainly owing to the growing ultra-Orthodox population. Antwerp is also internationally known for its diamond trade, a sector that has been dominated by the large Orthodox Jewish community in the city.
Whereas numerous studies focus upon Jews of the United States, both native-born and migrants, few studies have explored contemporary Jews in Europe. This book contributes to research by focusing on Jewish ethnic identity, integration and acculturation of both native-born and immigrants in three European cities. The need for research on West European Jews has become even more urgent today in view of the current wave of antisemitism, accompanied by numerous violent incidents, including barbaric murders. Evidently, Europe is facing an overall rise in racism and xenophobia. Jews in France and Belgium express increasing interest in immigrating to Israel or to other destinations.
The main contribution of the book is manifest in elaborating on theoretical terms such as minorities and their socio-cultural integration within the majority, community organizations, both formal and informal, religious or secular, ethnic identity and identification. In addition, the book presents analyses of challenges, strengths, vitality, dynamics and continuity of these three Jewish communities, including their native-born, short and long-term immigrants. Common traits as well as differences among the three communities are discussed according to three themes: 1) Integration, segregation and assimilation into the non-Jewish majority; 2) Jewish communal continuity and vitality; 3) Multiple ethnic identity and identification, as well as acculturation.
This study demonstrates that the three communities of Paris, Brussels and Antwerp have strength and vitality of their own, which predict their scope of continuity in the future. However, inner changes of population, structure of organizations, ethnic identity and affiliations, accompanied by interactions on daily basis with the non-Jewish majority call for new collaborations and policy trajectories beyond the single Jewish community.