Membership Quiz Flashcards
torah
first five books of the Hebrew Bible
synagogues
place of Jewish worship
rabbis
Jewish religious leaders
Palestine is present day…
Israel
Jewish history in Palestine
When Jews in Palestine were conquered by Romans, they refused to worship Roman gods. Some Jews suggested rebellion, while others like Jesus suggested reform. His disciples separated from Judaism, resulting in other Christian churches.
Jerusalem
claimed as capitol city and Holy land by Christians and Muslims
What is a stereotype?
widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular person or thing
antisemitism
hostility to or prejudice against Jews
Early Church to 1400
European Catholic hierarchy accused Jews of crucifying Christ. Romans destroyed Jewish temple in Jerusalem 70 AD as punishment. Only minority religion on Catholic continent. Pogroms common.
Early Church to 1400 stereotypes
Jews served devil. caused Black Death, only converted for material gain
Blood Libel
myth that Jews killed Christian children and used their blood for ritual purposes
1300-1800
Jews invited to settle in Europe with restriction on residence (ghettos). Encouraged to perform managerial and commercial tasks, so many practiced usury - lending money - because Christians considered charging interest on loans sinful. Could not own land, serve as military officers, or join Guilds. Could only have state service jobs if they converted.
1300-1800 stereotypes
work with money because they’re greedy, cowards that avoid military service, preferred meaningless study over hard work
1800-1918
European nations established equality in constitutions, so now Jews could live and work among non Jews. Overrepresented in future-oriented jobs like finance, banking, medicine, law. More politically engaged, but antisemitism parties formed. Best time for Jews before downhill.
1800-1918 stereotypes
communists, control of media, blocked Christians from certain fields, converted for material gain
The Protocols of the Elders of Zion
antisemitic publication, fiction documenting Jewish conspiracy to take over the world
World War I
Three trends developed during and immediately after:
- Stab in the back legend
- Bolshevik Revolution and Russia
- Versailles Treaty
Meaning of stab in the back legend
Austria and Germany claimed Jews and communists were internal traitors working with foreign interests
Meaning of Bolshevik Revolution belief
Claimed that Jews were supportive of revolutionary regimes
Meaning of Versailles Treaty conspiracy
Embarrassed and angered Germany. Thought to be manufactured by Jews for their own benefit.
1875-1945
Intellectuals and politicians developed racist perception of Jews and belief in white supremacy. Contact with natives in the Americas, Asia, Africa supported social darwinism.
1875-1945 stereotype
Jews were polluting Aryan blood through intermarriage for world domination
Social Darwinism
Ranking races. Humans are divided into races biologically driven to struggle against each other, and the fittest (Aryans) survive and come out on top.
Samuel Morton
Philadelphia surgeon who hypothesized link between brain size and race to prove white supremacy. Claimed races were fixed, incapable of being changed, intrinsically different.
Paul Broca
French anthropologist warned against race mixing. Believed only “compatible” races would produce fertile offspring. His research supported separate but equal case Plessy v. Ferguson.
Ernst Haeckel
German biologist who believed in social Darwinism and eugenics. Ranked races: Aryans on top, Jews and Africans on bottom.
Rudolph Virchow
In research under German Anthropological Society, studied Jewish and Aryan children and concluded they were more alike than different.
Setting for Armenian Genocide
WWI in Muslim Ottoman Empire
Why were Armenians targets in the Ottoman Empire
Christian minority in Muslim empire, and other Armenians were in Russia, which was enemy land, so they could be seen as traitors.
What happened to Armenian men, women, and children?
Men were separated from women and children and executed or put in labor camps. Women and children were marched out/deported and suffered death from starvation, rape, and forced marriages.
What evidence existed that Armenians were being targeted?
NYT was reporting on it, Secretary of State called for protection, Ottomans claimed that they were relocating them for safety but being attacked by others, but negligence and menace shined through the facade.
Some violent acts carried out against Armenians
public hangings, mass execution, labor camps
Story of the Sneeches
The star-bellied considered themselves better than the non. The salesman offered a machine to make the non into star-bellies, but the original star-bellied didn’t like that they couldn’t be identified anymore, so the salesman offered a machine to take the stars off. It turns into a loop of on and off until the salesman leaves and everyone is left not knowing who was originally what, so they recognize one is not superior than they other, that it was just surface level differences, and live equally.
Story of the Twilight Zone episode
Janet Tyler went in for her 11th surgery to fix her face. She was traditionally beautiful and everyone else deformed, but it was flipped in the Twilight Zone. When Janet’s last surgery leaves her still “ugly” she is forced to go live in isolation with people of her own kind because the government does not allow differences, only conformity.
Story of Jane Elliot
3rd grade teacher from Iowa. Taught her class about discrimination through a simulation with eye color. Blue eyed people were superior one day, and brown-eyed people the next. The superior group received advantages like extra recess, whereas the inferior group were called names, reprimanded, forced to wear collars, and couldn’t play with the others or drink from the same water fountain. The superior kids even completed the card game faster.
