Sarah Cohen stood at Lod Airport in 1952, clutching her mother's hand as DDT powder rained down on their heads. They had just arrived from Baghdad, part of the mass exodus of Iraqi Jews. Like hundreds of thousands of other Mizrahi Jews fleeing Arab countries, they expected to find a welcoming homeland. Instead, they found themselves directed to ma'abarot - transit camps that would shape the future of Israeli society.
Across town, the Levinsky family from Poland was being settled into a new apartment in Tel Aviv. The contrast couldn't have been starker. While the Levinskys enrolled their children in established schools, Sarah's family lived in a tin shack in the desert town of Dimona. Her father, once a respected merchant in Baghdad, found himself working in construction.
Although this is a fictitious story, it exemplifies what happened when Middle Eastern Jews arrived in Israel in the 1950s, marking the beginning of a complex social divide that continues to influence Israeli society today.
Historical records show that between 1948 and 1964, approximately 850,000 Mizrahi Jews immigrated to Israel, many fleeing persecution in Arab countries.
The state's approach towards making Mizrahi Jews more Ashkenzi was systematic. David Ben-Gurion's government, dominated by European-born Jews, viewed Middle Eastern Jews as backward, needing to be "civilized" into modern Israelis.
Mizrachi children were often separated from their parents and sent to 're-education' youth villages where they were discouraged from speaking Arabic or maintaining their traditions.
In the ma'abarot (transit camps), conditions were notoriously harsh, with many families living in tin shacks for years.
Education also became a battleground. Ministry of Education statistics from the 1960s show significantly lower funding for schools in predominantly Mizrahi areas. A 1971 study found that only 2.7% of university students were of Mizrahi origin, despite representing nearly half the population.
By 1971, the frustration boiled over. Young Mizrahi activists, calling themselves the Black Panthers (borrowing the name from the American movement), took to Jerusalem's streets. Their protests forced Israel to confront its internal prejudices, highlighting discrimination in housing, education, and employment. Leaders like Charlie Biton and Saadia Marciano specifically called out systemic racism within Israeli institutions.
The rise of Shas party in the 1980s, led by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, marked a turning point in Mizrahi political power. Today, intermarriage rates between communities have increased significantly, and Mizrahi culture has gained mainstream acceptance in Israeli society.
Walking through Tel Aviv's Rothschild Boulevard or Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market, you'll hear Mizrahi music playing from cafes, and see young Israelis of all backgrounds enjoying Iraqi kubbeh and Moroccan couscous.
But look closer, and you'll find the old divisions haven't entirely healed. Statistics show Mizrahi Jews still earn less on average and are underrepresented in universities.
In fact, just today, leading academic Professor Avshalom Avitzur referred to Mizrahi Jews as still having a horrible Arabic mentality, and hating arabs as a result of the chip on their shoulders, which goes to show that the decades old prejudice is unfortunately alive and well, especially in the world of Israeli elites and academics.
While intermarriage rates rise and younger generations increasingly reject old labels, the echoes of those early years continue to shape Israeli society.
