David Ben-Gurion and the American Alignment for a Jewish State (The Modern Jewish Experience) [Hardcover]

Allon Gal (Author)

Book Description

Series: The Modern Jewish Experience | Publication Date: January 1, 1992

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

One week after the outbreak of WW II, Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion (1886-1973) presented to Haganah, a clandestine defense organization, his proposal for the establishment of a Jewish state through force of arms. Ben-Gurion pinned his hopes on the backing of American Jewry, having watched the British equivocate in their support for a Jewish national home in Palestine. How the Polish-born founder of the Mapai (later Labor) party swung Zionist foreign policy away from Britain and toward a growing reliance on American Jewry is the focus of this plodding, partisan study. When Ben-Gurion, future prime minister of Israel, visited the U.S. in 1940, anti-Semitism was resurgent, the country was neutral in the war and American Zionism was at its nadir. His ties with the Roosevelt administration and his battle against elements within his own party are ably illuminated by Gal, a historian at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Gal (history, Ben-Gurion Univ.) has written an impressive account of an important period in the history of political Zionism. In the late 1930s, the British bolstered their interests in the Arab Middle East by reneging on promises to support a national homeland in Palestine for the Jews. Because of this, Ben-Gurion, the leading Zionist activist of the time, turned instead to America for political and economic support. Gal's detailed, scholarly study examines Ben-Gurion's momentous decision and documents the internecine struggles between Ben-Gurion and his adherents and his English opponents led by Chaim Weizmann. This material is highly specialized and would be appropriate for libraries desiring in depth studies of the history of political Zionism.
- Robert A. Silver, Shaker Heights P.L., Ohio
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 280 pages
• Publisher: The Hebrew University Magnes Press (January 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 025332534X
• ISBN-13: 978-0253325341
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,511,432 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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