Text: Young Judaea - Group activities - Jewish living - Zionism - American affairs
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Teachers: This poster and the following essay are meant to be used in tandem with Being Jewish as part of The New Curriculum which is designed to encourage greater student participation in classroom discussions on political Zionism, Palestinian nationalism and U.S. Middle East policy.
This poster was published by Young Judaea, the oldest Zionist youth movement in the United States, founded in 1909. On the left side a Jewish-American man and woman are striding off an outline map of the United States filled in with a graphic of the American flag. A man, perhaps an Israeli or an American who has already "made aliya" (Hebrew: to immigrate to Israel) is welcoming them to Israel. He stands on an outline map of Palestine/Israel that features a formulaic graphic for a kibbutz (Hebrew: collective farm) with trees, service buildings and a water tower surrounded by large agricultural fields. The entire background is done in a flat grey and no other countries are indicated. All three figures are dressed in blue farm work clothing. The subtext of this graphic is that the Jewish-American man and woman are not mere visitors or tourists to Israel but rather they are immigrating permanently to Israel. Only there, according to Zionist dogma, can they begin to live authentic, Jewish lives.
The main goal of Young Judaea is to encourage Jewish Americans to emigrate from the United States and to settle in Israel. According to the most recently available statistics, less than 40% of all Jewish people in the world live in Israel. The United States is home to the largest Jewish population outside of Israel.
Young Judea is the youth program associated with Hadassah. The organization founded in 1909 runs summer camps, conventions and youth trips to Israel. This poster, advertising Young Judea programs is undated but the imagery, design and use of primary colors suggest that it was published in the 40’s-50’s. Two youths, standing on a stylized American flag in the shape of the continental United States, reach out to an Israeli youth who stands on the outline of Israel with a sketch of a settlement. Under the image is the address of the national office with the addresses of the regional office and chapter left to be filled out after the poster's delivery. The right top corner has a very small loss. There are 2 repaired tears – one on the right top edge and the other on the right edge in the center. The poster is backed onto linen.The image is bright and clean albeit with the expected time change. A great poster with an image evocative of a simpler time in U.S.- Israel relations. Price: $1,450.00 info@artatthecenter.com
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