The Jews of the United States, 1654 to 2000 (Jewish Communities in the Modern World) [Hardcover]

Hasia R. Diner (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0520227735 | ISBN-13: 978-0520227736 | Publication Date: August 23, 2004 | Edition: 1

Since Peter Stuyvesant greeted with enmity the first group of Jews to arrive on the docks of New Amsterdam in 1654, Jews have entwined their fate and fortunes with that of the United States--a project marked by great struggle and great promise. What this interconnected destiny has meant for American Jews and how it has defined their experience among the world's Jews is fully chronicled in this work, a comprehensive and finely nuanced history of Jews in the United States from 1654 through the end of the past century. Hasia R. Diner traces Jewish participation in American history--from the communities that sent formal letters of greeting to George Washington; to the three thousand Jewish men who fought for the Confederacy and the ten thousand who fought in the Union army; to the Jewish activists who devoted themselves to the labor movement and the civil rights movement.
Diner portrays this history as a constant process of negotiation, undertaken by ordinary Jews who wanted at one and the same time to be Jews and full Americans. Accordingly, Diner draws on both American and Jewish sources to explain the chronology of American Jewish history, the structure of its communal institutions, and the inner dynamism that propelled it. Her work documents the major developments of American Judaism--he economic, social, cultural, and political activities of the Jews who immigrated to and settled in America, as well as their descendants--and shows how these grew out of both a Jewish and an American context. She also demonstrates how the equally compelling urges to maintain Jewishness and to assimilate gave American Jewry the particular character that it retains to this day in all its subtlety and complexity.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the fourth volume in the Jewish Communities in the Modern World series, Diner (an NYU professor and author of Hungering for America) shows that, from the colonial era to the present, Jews have wanted both to "be good Jews and... full Americans." The book opens with a survey of the small Jewish community in colonial and revolutionary America. Diner then turns to the 19th-century waves of Jewish immigration. In these pages, we meet upwardly mobile peddlers, religious reformers pressing for English-language worship services and Jewish state senators. In the final section of the book, Diner charts Jewish responses to World War I, the Holocaust and the Civil Rights movement. Diner is to be commended for her thorough integration of women into her Jewish American story; she recounts the stories of female philanthropists and teachers, and examines the roles women played in political movements from Zionism to second-wave feminism. She also deserves kudos for attending to both religious and secular Judaism. She traces the 18th- and 19th-century battles for religious reform, the impact of Orthodox Jewish immigration on the American Jewish landscape and so forth, but she does not reduce the history of Judaism in America to a strictly religious story, or neglect political and cultural expressions of Judaism, like Yiddish theater. This academic synthesis of Jewish American history will find a home in the university market and will have crossover appeal to a broader readership.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"A comprehensive and nuanced treatment of a big subject; Hasia Diner brings the grand narrative to life through individual anecdotes, skilfully intertwines the religious and secular aspects of the story, and includes the role of women throughout." - Times Literary Supplement "A riveting account of the fascinating history of American Jewry.... A readable and fascinating account of Jewish life in America." - History in Review "Diner is to be commended for her thorough integration of women into her Jewish American story.... She also deserves kudos for attending to both religious and secular Judaism." - Publishers Weekly"

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 447 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (August 23, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520227735
• ISBN-13: 978-0520227736
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #427,257 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Focuses on Jewish participation in American history, January 4, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Jews of the United States, 1654 to 2000 (Jewish Communities in the Modern World) (Hardcover)

Jews have long tried to entwine their fate and fortunes with the U.S. and this history of the Jews in this country begins in 1654 with the first wave of Jewish immigrants and continues to modern times. In The Jews Of The United States, 1654 To 2000 (the newest title in the outstanding "Jewish Communities in the Modern World" series from the University of California Press) Hasia Diner focuses on Jewish participation in and contributions to American history and politics, considers the blends of Jewish and American culture which have resulted from centuries of assimilation, and analyzes the structure of modern Jewish communities and institutions. An excellent, comprehensive history for any college-level Jewish studies collection.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Repetitive and poorly edited writing style., September 1, 2005

By 

Maryland Reader - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Jews of the United States, 1654 to 2000 (Jewish Communities in the Modern World) (Hardcover)

It seems clear that much research went into this book, unfortunately with very little visible editing. There is much tedious repetition of the same point. Extraneous information peeks out at us without elaboration. It is true that New York emerged as the center of American publishing, but why tantalize the reader with this fact by means of a single sentence in the midst of several pages about the garment industry. The treatment of the 1911 Triangle fire is far too minimal, and suggests, erroneously, that this was a solely Jewish experience. This is most emphatically not the case, either in terms of the victims or the long term political consequences both for Jews and the Democratic party.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting Run Through Jewish History in America, September 1, 2007

By 

Marc Axelrod (Potter, Wi USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Jews of the United States, 1654-2000 (Jewish Communities in the Modern World) (Paperback)

Hasia Diner does a great job at depicting what jewish life was like in the USA through the years. She describes how many came over in the 17th century, and how Governor Oglethorpe of Georgia felt that they could contribute to the well being of the colonies.

We read of the early antipathy some colonists had toward the Jewish people, but also how early Jewish activists secured basic rights for the Jews in places like Maryland (Pennsylvania was a spot where Jewish people were not always welcome).

We learn of how early Jewish synagogue communities survived without rabbis. We see Jewish people congregating in the larger cities, opening fruit and vegetable stands, and (especially) garment shops. These garment shops thrived during the Civil War when union army uniforms needed to be provided.

We also read of the origins of groups like the American Jewish Congress and Bnai Brith and the Anti-Defamation League. You will also learn about the early 20th centur distrust of Jewish people, how businessmen such as Henry Ford feared that educated and wise Jewish people would take over the country.

Many Jewish people took Gentile names at this time so that they would not be denied opportunities for work. You also read of how American Jewry was shocked and appalled at the Holocaust and how they called on FDR to intervene.

You will also discover the origins of the three major streams of American Judaism (Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox).

Hasia Diner also considers the year 2000 to be particularly significant in that a practicing Jewish person nearly became the Vice-President of the United States.

I thought the book was great. It was easy to read, and it held my attention. I also was surprised about how many entertainers and musicians and songwriters and producers are Jewish (George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, the Warner brothers, etc).

Rev. Marc Axelrod