African Americans in Israel
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African Americans in Israel number at least 25,000, comprise several separate groups, including the groups of African American Jews who have immigrated from the United States to Israel making
aliyah Aliyah (, ; he, עֲלִיָּה ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel, which is in the modern era chiefly represented by the Israel, State of Israel ...
, non-Jewish African Americans who have immigrated to Israel for personal or business reasons, pro-athletes who formerly played in the major leagues in the United States before playing in Israel on local basketball and other
sports teams A sports team is a group of individuals who play sports ( sports player), usually team sports, on the same team. The number of players in the group depends on type of the sports requirements. Historically, sports teams and the people who play ...
, as well as
foreign students International students, or foreign students, are students who undertake all or part of their tertiary education in a country other than their own and move to that country for the purpose of studying. In 2019, there were over 6 million internat ...
studying in Israeli universities, businessmen, merchants, and guest workers, along with
Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...
citizens of African American ancestry. African Americans have served in the
Israel Defence Force The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branch ...
, and have largely been accepted and into
Israeli society The Israel, State of Israel had a population of approximately 9,506,100 inhabitants as of May 2022. Some 73.9% were Israeli Jews, Jews of all backgrounds (about 7,021,000 individuals), 21.1% were Arab citizens of Israel, Arab of any religion ot ...
, and have represented Israel in numerous international forums such as the Olympic Games, and the
Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...
. African American-Israelis have had a major cultural impact in Israel, particular in the arts and culture, music and sports. In addition, there as a large community of Black Hebrew Israelites numbering at least 5,000 people, who originally immigrated to Israel from Chicago in the 1960s, and live mostly in the southern Israeli town of
Dimona Dimona ( he, דִּימוֹנָה, ar, ديمونا) is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south-east of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arava valley in the Southern District of Israel. In its population was . The Shi ...
.


African American Israelis

There are a large number of African American Israelis including the American-born Israeli basketball player Joe Dawson and his Israeli-born son
Shawn Dawson Shawn Dawson ( he, שון דאוסון; born 12 December 1993) is an Israeli professional basketball player for Hapoel Holon of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. He is the son of former basketball player Joe Dawson. He was named the Israel ...
who live in
Eilat Eilat ( , ; he, אֵילַת ; ar, إِيلَات, Īlāt) is Israel's southernmost city, with a population of , a busy port and popular resort at the northern tip of the Red Sea, on what is known in Israel as the Gulf of Eilat and in Jordan ...
, and American-born Israeli Olympic athlete. Donald Sanford who lives in Ein Shemer with his
Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
-Israeli wife.


African American Jews

There are a number of African American Jews who have made aliyah to Israel. All African American Jews are eligible for Israeli citizenship, like all other Jews, according to the Israeli law of return. They span the full range of
denominations of Judaism Jewish religious movements, sometimes called " denominations", include different groups within Judaism which have developed among Jews from ancient times. Today, the most prominent divisions are between traditionalist Orthodox movements (includin ...
including Reform, Conservative,
Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...
and various streams of Haredi Judaism. Notable African American Jews who moved to Israel include Nissim Black, Amar'e Stoudmire, and others.


African American athletes in Israel

Jamie Arnold, a retired African American-Israeli basketball player with dual citizenship who played for the Israeli national basketball team. A number of African American pro athletes have moved to Israel to play for local Israeli sports teams. The majority of these athletes are basketball players, and some have decided to stay in Israel permanently following their time in the Israeli national basketball league.


Black Hebrew Israelite community in Israel

The African Hebrew Israelite Nation of Jerusalem (also known as the Black Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem, the Black Hebrew Israelites, or simply the Black Hebrews or Black Israelites) is a spiritual group of African Americans in Israel, now mainly based in
Dimona, Israel Dimona ( he, דִּימוֹנָה, ar, ديمونا) is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south-east of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arava valley in the Southern District of Israel. In its population was . The Shi ...
, whose members believe they are descended from the
Twelve Tribes of Israel The Twelve Tribes of Israel ( he, שִׁבְטֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל, translit=Šīḇṭēy Yīsrāʾēl, lit=Tribes of Israel) are, according to Hebrew scriptures, the descendants of the biblical patriarch Jacob, also known as Israel, throu ...
. The community now numbers around 5,000. They came from a group of
African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, many from Chicago, Illinois, who migrated to Israel in the late 1960s. The group was founded in Chicago by a former steel worker named Ben Carter (1939–2014, also known as Ben Ammi Ben-Israel). In his early twenties Carter was given the name Ben Ammi by Rabbi Reuben of the Chicago Congregation of Ethiopian Hebrews. Ben Ammi was working in an airline factory when he first discovered the Black Hebrew movement and its philosophy. According to Ben Ammi, in 1966, at the age of 27, he had a vision in which the Archangel Gabriel called him to take his people,
African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, back to the Holy Land of Israel. Initially, the African Hebrew Israelites asserted that they were the only rightful inheritors of the land of Israel. They refused to convert to Judaism and asserted that most Israeli Jews were not descendants of the ancient Israelites. By the late 1980s, the group tempered their beliefs. They came to see Israel as a nation of many cultures, races, and religions.


Notable African-American Israelis

* Jamie Arnold- African American-Israeli basketball player who played for the member of the Israel men's national basketball team. * Eddie Butler-
Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...
singer of African Hebrew Israelite origin, who later converted to Orthodox Judaism and was a member of the band
Eden Eden may refer to: * Garden of Eden, the "garden of God" described in the Book of Genesis Places and jurisdictions Canada * Eden, Ontario * Eden High School Middle East * Eden, Lebanon, a city and former bishopric * Camp Eden, Iraq O ...
. Butler was the first person of African American descent to participate in the
Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...
when he represented Israel twice at the
2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
and
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
editions of the event. * Joe Dawson- African American -
Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...
professional basketball player *
Shawn Dawson Shawn Dawson ( he, שון דאוסון; born 12 December 1993) is an Israeli professional basketball player for Hapoel Holon of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. He is the son of former basketball player Joe Dawson. He was named the Israel ...
- Israeli basketball player of African American and Yemenite Jewish descent, son of Joe Dawson, and member of the Israel men's national basketball team. * D'or FischerDor Anthony Naheem FISCHER (ISR).
/ref> (born October 12, 1981) is an
American–Israeli , native_name_lang = , image = , caption = , population = 110,000–150,000 , popplace = New York metropolitan area, Los Angeles metropolitan area, Miami metropolitan area, and other large metropolitan ar ...
professional basketball player for Elitzur Eito Ashkelon of the
Israeli National League Liga Leumit ( he, ליגה לאומית, lit. ''National League'') is the second division of the Israeli Football League, and below its Premier League. Structure There are 16 clubs in the league. At the end of each season, the two lowest-place ...
. He is originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania but has lived in Israel since the early 2000s and has been married to an Israeli woman since 2008. Fischer has also represented the senior Israeli national team. Standing at , he plays at the power forward and center positions. *
Ahuva Gray Ahuva Gray (née Delores Gray) is a writer on religion and memoirist. She is a former Baptist minister who converted to Judaism and chronicled her changing beliefs in the book ''My Sister, the Jew'', published in 2001. Biography Gray is Afric ...
- African American-Israeli religious author and memoirist. She is a former Baptist minister from Chicago who converted to Orthodox Judaism and chronicled her changing beliefs in the book My Sister, the Jew, and has lived in Bayit VeGan, Jerusalem, Israel since the late 20th century. *
Aulcie Perry Aulcie Perry ( he, אולסי פרי) (born July 3, 1950) is a retired American-Israeli professional basketball player. He helped Maccabi Tel Aviv win two EuroLeague championships, during his nine seasons with the team. During his playing caree ...
- African American-
Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...
professional basketball player who played for Maccabi Tel Aviv between 1976 and 1985, who converted to Judaism and became an Israeli citizen in 1978. * Donald Sanford- African American-Israeli Olympic sprinter originally from
Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...
, who represented Israel at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics and is married to Israeli basketball player Danielle Dekel-Sanford since 2008, and resides in
Kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...
Ein Shemer. Sanford won a gold medal in the Men's 400m at the
2013 Maccabiah Games The 19th Maccabiah ( he, המכביה התשע-עשרה) were held during July 18 to 30, 2013. The Games brought together 7,500 competing athletes, making it the third-largest international sporting event in the world after the Olympic Games and ...
, and was named the 2014 Israeli Sportsman on The Year after he became only the second-Israeli to win the bronze medal in the 400 metres sprint at the European Athletic Championships held in Zurich on August 15, 2014, with a new Israeli record of 45.27 seconds. He dedicated his medal to the Israel Defense Forces. He also represented Israel at the
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
and
2016 Summer Olympic Games ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro d ...
.


See also

* Americans in Israel * Doms in Israel * Ethiopian Jews in Israel *
Beta Israel The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...
* African American Jews *
African American diaspora The African-American diaspora refers to communities of people outside of the United States who are descended from people of African descent who were enslaved in the United States or its preceding European colonies along the east coast of Nort ...
* African American–Jewish relations


References

{{African diaspora African-American people African diaspora African-American diaspora African diaspora in Israel