Lizzy Ratner seeks her history in Poland

Lizzy Ratner returned to Poland to visit the land of her ancestors. Three out of four American Jews have at least one ancestor from pre-Nazi Poland. My own children have one such ancestor, through my husband, whose mother is descended from Russian and Polish Jews.

Ratner writes of a moment in her trip:

Again and again, as I stared at the remnants of ghetto walls, I wondered, baffled, how a people that was forced to live – and die – behind walls could force another people to live – and die – behind walls?

Thank you, Lizzy Ratner. This is the heart of the matter.

And thank you to Phil Weiss and the blog Mondoweiss for hosting great writing and reporting on this painful topic.

Comments

[Janey]

I do have (aquired) nostalgia from my great grandparents for the old jewish enclaves of the lower east side and Southeastern Boston but no desire to go to Eastern Europe. Lizzy Ratner is just naive and has a superficial view of Yiddish arts. If you've read Yiddish literature, seen Yiddish folk art, heard the slow wailing music and the witty Yiddish theatre, you will see that the only thing the old country sparked is self deprecation of jewish humor and the sarcasm that stemmed from disdain not romanticism for the rich countryside and palaces. Last year I tried to start a friendship group at my college similar to seeds of peace between jews and eastern europeans but it didnt fly. 90% of those who showed up were jewish and Eastern Europeans werent interested. What say you, Leila? Are you disallusioned with Poland any other suggestions as a homeland for jews?

[Leila Abu-Saba]

I don't have an opinion on homeland for the Jews.

As an American devoted to secular democracy and separation of church and state, I believe that all the people living in the land of Israel deserve the right to vote. If that means one state, then one state. If two states, then the Israeli citizens living in the West Bank need to either leave, or become voting citizens of the Palestinian state.

Disenfranchising three million people in the West Bank while stealing their land and water and imprisoning them behind walls is un-democratic. (besides being against the rule of international law - all West Bank settlements are illegal and the occupation is illegal).

No country that commits such acts can call itself a democracy, and no country that imposes such apartheid can survive for long in that form.

BTW on the subject of "naive" - this is a favorite adjective that Israel-apologists like to use when confronted with a Jew who makes a legitimate and unanswerable criticism of Israel's policies. The word has little meaning or evidentiary support in this context, and I ask other readers to keep in mind its propaganda intent.

[Janey]

Would an African American journalist travel to a cotton plantation and call it their homeland?

[Janey]

Would an African American journalist travel to a cotton plantation and call it their homeland?

[Leila Abu-Saba]

Janey, go on over to Mondoweiss and make that comment to Lizzy Ratner directly. You're trying to start a fight and I don't like your attitude. Any more like that from you and I will delete your comment.

And I won't respond to you again even if you send flowers. I just got ugly medical news and I don't need your sort of talk around here.

[Anne Silver]

Thank you Leila for your very apt, clear and eloquent response to Janey's first comment. Thanks for your work, and all good thoughts and wishes to you.

[ArabJew]

A clear, simple and concise answer to lizzy ratner should suffice:

the jews of europe did nothing to their host countries, whereas the arab people (of which the palestinians are a member) tried more than once to eradicate israel, preyed upon jews and massacred them, started a campaign of terrorism both in and out of israel and even so it took more than 55 years of conflict before seperation has been tried.

No, the all-liked european-purifying comparison to nazism is not the heart of the matter. the israeli-arab conflict is.

[Sara]

to arabjew, israel eradicated Palestine, they didnt only try but they succeeded so before you talk about what arabs want to do, look at that zionists MANAGED TO DO. Israel is not the host country of the Palestinians, israel is a colonial state planted in Palestine and the land of the Palestinians.