jewish immigrants Flashcards
experiences
poor housing
most jews who arrived after 1880 were very poor and settled on areas like the Gorbals in glasgow alongside other femurs who spoke yiddish.
experiences
discrimination
they often found it difficult to get a job with industries such as banking and the civil service refusing to employ them. they were also banned from golf & bowling clubs.
experiences
retail success
like the italians, many jewish immigrants started businesses by selling door-to-door in the streets. by 1920 some of glasgow’s most famous businesses were owned or operated by jews such as Goldbergs.
experiences
cigarette industry
jewish immigrants ran the successful cigarette industry based in glasgow, owning many of the cities cigarette warehouses at the docks.
experiences
taloiring efficiency
they opened tailors and dressmakers such as Morrisons. They used new, more efficient techniques to significantly reduce the cost of production and so sold much less expensive clothes.
experiences
higher education
poorer jewish parents pushed their children on to higher education, determined to support them by entering a profession such as law or medicine, they became middle class
scot’s reactions
poor relief
groups of wealthy jewish families such as the glasgow jewish board of guardians looked after the poorer jews as they were worried about negative stereotypes emerging. very few jews received any help from local poor relieve. good reaction, not seen as burden
scot’s reaction
trade unions
jews were heavily involved in the ‘sweated trades’ which were known for very poor pay and incredibly difficult working conditions. trade unions heavily opposed these jewish businesses and resentment grew among the working class
scot’s reaction
anti-semitism
while there is evidence of some discrimination of jewish people in scotland, widespread anti-semitism didn’t take place. the anti-jewish british union of fascists were heckled and attacked by ordinary Glaswegian workers during an anti jewish ‘rally’ in glasgow
scot’s reaction
bullying in school
the insular nature of the jewish community meant that jewish children were often treated as outsiders in scottish schools as they didn’t have social experiences with other children outwi the. as a result they experienced bullying & name-calling
assimilation
insular
jewish families tended to live close to other jews and didn’t mix with scot’s socially very often. jewish families tended to speak yiddish at home and at social events. yiddish newspapers were also circulated.
assimilation
employment
jews very often worked within jewish-owner businesses or were self-employed. they didn’t mix with scot’s in the workplace very often.
assimilation
community structure
jews established synagogues for worship which became a focal point of the local jewish community, also becoming a place for community gatherings and celebrations. as a result of scottish discrimination, jews were also forced to establish their own recreation clubs such as Bonnyton Bowling club. kept jews and scot’s apart.
assimilation
later generations
by the 1920s and 30s the jewish community worked hard to integrate into scottish society. they became heavily involved supporters of Rangers and Celtic, and jewish newspapers stopped printing in Yiddish. they started to identify as scottish jews rather than jews in scotland.
