Twenty-five years ago the thought of yeridah, emigrating from Israel, was an all-consuming end-all-be-all. It was a trying time in the country, as the economy was in a dismal state of triple-digit inflation and barely perceptible GDP growth. At the same time, the high-tech industry was taking off in the United States and companies like Digital, National Semiconductor, and AMD were growing rapidly and doling out plenty of work visas to qualified Israeli graduates from the Technion. Lured by company cars and comfortable salaries, eligible Israelis made the hard decision to uproot their families for greener economic pastures. This was before the Internet, “globalization” and cell phones, when phone calls to family members outside of Israelwere measured in dollars per minute and required the logistical consideration of having both parties available and present near a landline.
These Israelis constituted the first wave of modern yeridah and were generally frowned upon by their native counterparts. They were deemed lesser citizens, ostracized anti-Zionist pariahs that simply couldn’t cut it and gave up on their home country for superficial material gains. They congregated in the States around ad-hoc support groups based on social interactions, and kept a noticeable distance from their American neighbors when work was not involved.
Today, Israel is experiencing a second wave of modern yeridah, which is both similar and different from the previous wave. The type of Israelis leaving the country now are in many ways the same as those who left in prior years: educated, financially ambitious, Ashkenazi. Yet globalization has made labor migration easier, and has vastly decreased the effective distance between Israel and the United States. The once seemingly insurmountable physical and ideological distance between Israel and her expatriates has been replaced by instant messaging, Facebook, and bargain airfare.
More importantly, globalization has not only affected the economics of yeridah but also the outlook ofyeridah. The once common negative perception of Israelis living abroad no longer holds, both because of the sheer numbers involved—estimated at around 700,000 worldwide—but also because back-and-forth migration between Israel and the States is now commonplace. Many Israelis will spend a few years abroad and return to Israel, and many olim will spend a few years in Israel and return abroad. Rather than being seen as people who abandoned their family, yordim are now regarded with a degree of empathy bordering on envy, because they have the financial and educational means to gain experience and insight beyondIsrael’s small borders.
The real change in the mentality toward yeridah, however, lies in the growing disenfranchisement and disappointment that Israelis feel toward their own country. It is no longer taboo to voice a negative opinion about Zionism. Alternative viewpoints and dissent are no longer deemed subversive; they are generally accepted as part of the growing fractionalization of Israeli culture. Even those who leave the country to avoid mandatory military service can find backing and support for their decision in some sectors of Israeli society. Yordim are no longer seen as selfish Americanized consumers, but rather as people simply trying to get away from the incessant instability of the region and find some sense of normalcy.
If the effects of globalization are the pull toward yeridah, then the ongoing stagnation (be it economic, ideological, political) in Israel is the push toward yeridah. With these issues still unresolved, it appears that Israeli emigration will continue to increase. The deciding factor will be whether the new wave of immigrants will maintain their connection to the land like their predecessors, or whether the increasing ease of leaving will also increase their letting go entirely.
