Comments (0)Editors Note
April 2009
Dear Readers,
Recently, I had the good fortune to attend a presentation by a group of Turkish Jewish teens who were visiting the United States for a few days. On this particular morning, they were at Krieger Schechter Day School, meeting with middle schoolers, and the students sat mesmerized as the Turkish teens spoke.
These 14 Turkish adolescents — four boys and 10 girls — arrived from Izmir, a city located on the Aegean Coast. In pictures of the city, shown on a power point presentation, the scenes were spectacular, featuring centuries of history in beautiful Mediterranean settings, along with Jewish life.
Most of the Jews, they noted, arrived in Turkey from Spain in 1492, following their expulsion from the Inquisition. By the early 20th century, they said, the Jewish population in Turkey peaked, at more than 500,000 Jews. Today, they estimated 20,000 Jews still reside in the country, with approximately 1,600 of them living in Izmir, the second largest Jewish community.
For years, the Jews lived side-by-side with the Muslims. In fact, the teens showed a photo of a necklace designed as a crescent moon, symbol of the faith of Islam, over the Star of David. “It indicated that the Islamic people embraced and protected us,” noted one of the youngsters.
I recall reading an article in the New York Times, I’m guessing around 1992, the 500th anniversary of when the Jews arrived in this predominately Muslim country. It told glowingly about the peaceful relationship between these two religious groups. In fact, it mentioned that Istanbul was the oldest continuous Jewish community in Europe.
Sad to say, things may be changing, with changes in Turkey’s government. When the teens were in Baltimore, Baltimore Jewish Times Executive Editor Phil Jacobs, who teaches an evening high school class at Beth Israel Congregation, had a chance to speak with one of the boys. The teen, who had just presented to the Beth Israel class, told him things were fine as long as one didn’t wear one’s Judaism in public. Everyone knows he’s Jewish, and when Israel invaded Gaza this past January, he said, he was bullied by some classmates. The organizers of the Baltimore trip were also fearful of the Turkish teens’ names appearing in our paper because of possible repercussions.
Over the years, so many of the world’s Jews have found their way to America, often to escape persecution. Will Turkey’s Jews be next?
That brings us to the current issue of iNSIDER. In “Sprouting Roots: Jewish Genealogical Journeys,” we talk to several people about tracing their family roots. We also provide advice and Web sites to help you re-create your family history.
With spring arriving, we also suggest you start your own garden and propose you may want to give it an Israeli flavor. We provide gardening ideas and recipes.
So, take advantage of the good weather.
Sincerely,
Rochelle Eisenberg
Editor
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