Liberal, egalitarian translator, video editor, musician, designer, Eurovision expert + archivistLiv Lovisa probably started the bruhaha over the changes in the Wikipedia Zionism page, tweeting: “The Wikipedia page for Zionism; 2023 vs 2024. History is being rewritten.”
She added in a different tweet: “Note, this is not criticism of Wikipedia itself. It’s hands down the least biased source of information online, and anyone trying to tell you that it’s inherently bad is probably trying to radicalize you. I’m trying to improve Wikipedia, not to condemn it.”
The Wikipedia page for Zionism;
2023 vs 2024.History is being rewritten. pic.twitter.com/8pglmWJKBB
— Liv Lovisa ?? (@eljest_) September 16, 2024
Before I state my opinion on the matter, I must note in a hurried fashion that Wikipedia is a disturbingly unreliable source of information, and that he who lives by Wikipedia will eventually dies by Wikipedia.
At the same time, since I tried and failed to get the 2023 version of the Wiki page on Zionism, I must rely on Israel Hayom which stated: “The 2023 version of the page framed Zionism as a nationalist movement born in the 19th century that sought to secure Jewish self-determination. In contrast, the 2024 version of the entry introduces more charged terminology, describing Zionism as an ‘ethno-cultural nationalist’ movement that engaged in ‘colonization of a land outside of Europe,’ with a heightened focus on the resulting conflicts with Palestinian Arabs. ‘Zionists wanted to create a Jewish state in Palestine with as much land, as many Jews, and as few Palestinian Arabs as possible,’ it writes.”
Let’s start with the most offensive quote, in my opinion: “Zionists wanted to create a Jewish state in Palestine with as much land, as many Jews, and as few Palestinian Arabs as possible.” This is, clearly, an opinion rather than a historical fact. Indeed, it is a citation from the writings of Dr. Adel Manna, whose own Wiki page reads: “a Palestinian historian with Israeli citizenship specializing in Palestine in the Ottoman period and the mid-20th century. He was the director of the Academic Institute for Arab Teacher Training at Beit Berl College, and the head of the Department for Arab Society in Israel at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute. Adel Manna was born in Majd al-Krum, Mandatory Palestine (now Israel).”
The quote could certainly be used down the page, as part of a section about Arab views on Zionism; but placing it as part of the opening paragraph is an attempt to turn what is essentially a badmouthing of Israel by an entitled Arab Israeli biting all the hands that feed him, into a fundamental definition of an encyclopedic term.
The second offensive line is borderline amusing because it points to the changes in the culture more than historical inaccuracies. It’s the Wiki opening line: “Zionism is an ethno-cultural nationalist movement that emerged in Europe in the late 19th century and aimed for the establishment of a Jewish state through the colonization of a land outside of Europe.”
For one thing, as a Zionist, I am grateful that this movement is ethno-cultural and nationalist. It means it’s for Jews only. It doesn’t say anything bad about other cultures and nations, it simply says this club is not for them.
But, of course, the most offensive part is, “…aimed for the establishment of a Jewish state through the colonization of a land outside of Europe.”
I’ll share a secret with you: back when Zionism was established, colonies were not a bad thing. Jewish settlements in the Land of Israel called themselves “colonies,” and the first among them, Petah Tikvah, established in 1878, is known to this day as the “Mother of the Colonies.” There’s even a street by this name, in Petah Tikvah. Amusingly, nowadays the more offensive term is “settlements,” an innocent word meaning a place where people live, which has become a battle cry against Jews residing in Biblical Israel.
Britannica, a better balanced and fact-checked encyclopedia, and today you don’t have to wait for the encyclopedia door-to-door salesman to bring you the latest volumes, says this in its opening paragraph on this matter:
“Zionism, a Jewish nationalist movement with the goal of the creation and support of a Jewish national state in Palestine, the ancient homeland of the Jews (Hebrew: Eretz Yisrael, “the Land of Israel”). Though Zionism originated in eastern and central Europe in the latter part of the 19th century, it is in many ways a continuation of the ancient attachment of the Jews and the Jewish religion to the historical region of Palestine. According to Judaism, Zion, one of the hills of ancient Jerusalem, is the place where God dwells.”
Thank you, Britannica editors for providing a truly non-biased, factual opening paragraph without citations from angry Arabs. That part was reserved for the second paragraph:
“Anti-Zionism, which dates back to Zionism’s beginnings, drew significant attention amid the Israel-Hamas War when some of the anti-war rhetoric took aim at Zionism and its adherents.”
And now, because it’s pleasurable to share, here’s my translation of the Hebrew Wiki page on Zionism. If you ask me, it’s a print-and-magnet-on-your-fridge-door document:
“Zionism is a national movement and an ideology that aims to establish a national home state for the Jewish people in the Land of Israel. The Zionist movement, as a national Jewish movement, arose in the last third of the 19th century, mainly in Central and Eastern Europe.
“Shortly after the establishment of the Zionist movement, most of the movement’s leaders associated its main goal with the renewal of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel – the establishment of a Jewish state. With the establishment of the State of Israel, Zionism continues to work to support Israel, ensuring its existence and strengthening it.
“The roots of Zionism lie in ancient motives and values inherent in the religious tradition on one hand, and in the national ideologies that flourished in Europe in the 19th century on the other. Zionism as a popular political movement that developed among the Jews in Eastern Europe was spurred by outbursts of antisemitism and fed by a secularization process that intensified among the Jewish population from the mid-19th century, which also gave its signals in the secularization of the 2,000-year-old religious longing for Zion. The modern world has determined that religion has ceased to be a sufficient identity definer for them. This conflict led to the creation of a new national self-determination.
“From its inception, the goals of Zionism were the return of Zion, assembling the diaspora, the revival of the Hebrew culture and language, the creation of a new Jew – the muscular Jewry according to Max Nordau, and the establishment of independent Jewish sovereignty.
“According to Benjamin Ze’ev Theodor Herzl, who is considered the prophet of modern Zionism, Zionism is a broad tract of ideas, which includes not only the desire for a legally guaranteed political territory for the Jewish people but also the desire for moral and spiritual perfection. Since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the world Zionist movement mainly continues to support Israel and to deal with threats to its existence and security.
“From its beginning, Zionism was not homogeneous. Its ideology, its leaders, and its parties differed from each other and even contradicted each other. The need of the moment alongside the longing to return to the ancestral homeland led to compromises and concessions for a common cultural and political goal.
“Zionism as an ideology is widespread not only among Jews and there are, for example, evangelical Christians around the world who define themselves as Zionists, but their reasons are completely different.”
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