American Jews donate approximately $2.5 billion to Israel each year. Behind all that money and influence lies a power-sharing dynamic that has left an indelible mark on the relationship between Israeli and American Jews and on the direction of Israeli society to this day. Checkbook Zionism investigates how both parties have managed their interests, emotions, and attitudes about the important yet at times tense collaboration between them.

By delving into the history of American Jews’ philanthropic giving to Israelis, Fleisch assesses the core nature of power sharing between both sides of the Jewish diaspora to the United States through in-depth contemporary case studies of the relationship between sixteen non-governmental organizations and their American Jewish donors. Field observation, document analysis, and interviews with leaders, activists, and select donors alike serve a critical role here, as Fleisch assesses whether these contemporary philanthropic associations repeat classic dynamics of power-sharing or whether they represent a marked departure from the Checkbook Zionism of old. The result is a new paradigm for evaluating power sharing that can be applied to future considerations of development in the Israel-Diaspora relationship. 
 

Using the vision embedded in Israel's Declaration of Independence as a template, this anthology presents a unique and comprehensive dialogue between North American Jews and Israelis about the present and future of the State of Israel. With each essay published in both Hebrew and English, in one volume, Deepening the Dialogue is the first of its kind, outlining cultural barriers as well as the immediate need to come together in conversation around the vision of a democratic solution for our nation state.

In this passionate and challenging book, a distinguished historian of Zionism argues that the world of Jewry is coming apart, that the old reality of Jewish nationhood lies shattered, that Israel is increasingly isolated, fated to go its separate way disengaged from Jewish communities in the Diaspora—most especially the Jewish community in the United States.

David Vital traces the roots of this disarray to the revolution—still unfinished—that began with the emancipation of the Jews in France after the Revolution, continued with the movement of Jews out of Europe and the decimation of European Jewry in the Holocaust, and culminated in the establishment of the state of Israel. For the first time in centuries the Jews have emerged as actors in history, with a nation-state of their own, but the political interests of Jews in Israel and of Jews in the Diaspora appear to be irreparably divided. The Jews are no longer a cohesive people, Vital claims; contemporary Jewry is profoundly fractured and dysfunctional, a fact that is nowhere more apparent than in the growing gap between the two largest Jewish communities in the world, the ones in Israel and in the United States.

This incisive book describes the waning of the Jewish nation, in an effort to lay the groundwork for a cool, clear, and more hardheaded view of the future of the Jews. Anyone with a serious interest in contemporary politics, and in the history and problematics of the Jews and Judaism, will find much to consider in this gripping book.

Israel's founders sought to create a nation of new Jews who would never again go meekly to the death camps. Yet Israel's strength has become synonymous with an oppression of the Palestinians that provokes anger throughout the Muslim world and beyond. How are Israelis able to see themselves as victims while victimizing others? What does Israeli Jewish identity mean today?

Arthur Neslen explores the dynamics, distortions and incredible diversity of Israeli society. From the mouths of soldiers, settlers, sex workers and the victims of suicide attacks, Occupied Minds is the story of a national psyche that has become scarred by mental security barriers, emotional checkpoints and displaced outposts of self-righteousness and aggression.

From vignettes to in-depth interviews, more than fifty Israelis offer their accounts. What they reveal is in turn powerful, haunting, subtle and disturbing. Illustrated throughout with photographs, this unique book offers an unrivalled insight into Israeli consciousness, private and public.

It charts the evolution of a communal self-image based on cultural and religious values towards one formed around a single militaristic imperative: national security.

‘As a critic of Zionism and as an opponent of Jewish exclusivity, Israel Shahak is special. He possesses in-depth knowledge of Israeli society, Jewish culture and the history of his people. His humanitarian concerns and commitments are extensive; his work as a human rights campaigner ... is enormous ... Shahak provides insights [in Open Secrets] that are often far more penetrating than what has been written by others ... Little of the information and few of the insights in Open Secrets can be found in other books that focus on Israel and the Middle East ... Open Secrets is an excellent book for required reading in History, political science and/or international affairs courses in which there is consideration of Israel in the Middle East.’ The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs

An edited volume that grapples with the complex issues and conflicts that face instructors developing curricula about Israel.
 
Jewish Americans are divided in their views on Israel. While scholars have outlined philosophical principles to guide educators who teach about Israel, there has been less scholarship focused on the pedagogy surrounding the country. This book resituates teaching—the questions, dilemmas, and decision-making that teachers face—as central to both Israel studies and Israel education. Contributors illuminate how educators from differing pedagogical orientations, who teach in a range of educational settings learn, understand, undertake, and ultimately improve the work of teaching Israel. The volume also looks at the professional support and learning opportunities teachers may need to engage with these pedagogical questions.