Russian Aliyah and Life in Israel

This intermediate course will prepare you to read and watch Israeli media reporting on the Russian community in the country and the challenges they face, both from identity, assimilation, and discrimination standpoints. The waves of Russian Jewish immigration after the collapse of the Soviet Union brought Jews of Russian descent to Israel where they had to rebuild their lives and gain acceptance by the broader Israeli community. The lessons for this course will teach you a variety of vocabulary that captures these challenges, which include challenging dangerous stereotypes about Russians. Some vocabulary you will learn for this course includes: גזענות – racism; תחיו בעוני – you’ll live in poverty; אני התגאיתי – I was proud; הסתה חמורה – severe incitement; התביישתי בזה – I was ashamed of it