20th Century Jerusalem

Week 10 Lecture 1 (3/8/11):

During this lecture, we talked about the Jerusalem we see in the news spotlight, the Jerusalem in the center of political and religious debate. After the end of the Ottomon Empire, Jerusalem still continued to grow. The population of Jerusalem increased, especially in respect to the Jews. However, in the 20th century, there was a rise in anti-semitism, the act of blaming Jews because they are different or because they are more successful. I, personally, am very passionate about this topic. I don't believe in discrimination, but unfortunately, it has become almost part of human nature. It was practiced in the past, and is here in the present when discrimination is condescended. With special consideration of the Jews, they had to endure great amounts of persecution and discrimination in their very long history. For Jews to remain a dominant religion today really shows how strong their faith in God is and how they grow from oppression, not break down.

The Jews tried their best to earn a state of their own in the early 20th century. During the British Mandate, which occurred after WWI, the British tried to settle on a compromise between the Arabs and Jews, but to no avail. There was constant fighting because neither wanted to give up their own land or settle for less than the other side. A "War of Independence" broke out in 1948, that ended in an armistice signed on Match 16, 1949. This gave rise to the Green Line, separating the territory of Israel and Jordan, and also of the Jews and Arabs. This was a victory to the Jews, but a catastrophe to the Arabs, who saw this as a major loss. Controversy arises today because of Jewish settlements on the West Bank, the area past the Green Line belonging to the Arabs. I do not know much about this subject, but it makes me angry when people break a pact or treaty. If the Jews agreed to stay in West Jerusalem, did they think they can build on areas in the Eastern side and get away with it? Obviously, conflict would have been inevitable, so why not save their country, and the world, turmoil and pain by abiding to the initial pact?