Volume 7, Issue 11 / Cheshvan 5765 / November 2004

"I Always Knew I Would Make Aliyah. It Was Just a Matter of Time."

"In Israel people talk to you freely, even on the street. This annoys some people, but it makes me feel that I'm at home!"

"I always knew I would make aliyah," says Dorit Fredj, her black curls tumbling carelessly onto her shoulders. "It was just a matter of time." Her eyes twinkle and a smile lights up her face. "Now I feel that I'm at home."

In December 2003 the attractive young Frenchwoman, motivated by a lifetime of commitment to Jewish and Zionist causes, and distressed by the pro-Palestinian bias she encountered at university, decided that the time had come.

Right after the outbreak of the most recent wave of Arab violence, in the autumn of 2000, Dorit began studying political sociology at the Sorbonne. "In the sociology department, most everybody is left-wing," she says. She was shocked to discover that many of the left-wingers were pro-Palestinian and anti-Zionist.

She fingers the gold Star of David she is wearing on a chain around her neck. "I always wore it," she says. "I would feel the looks, the stares. The worst thing was to hear the way people talk – they'd turn everything around. Whenever they spoke about Israel, they would say, 'Why is Israel doing this?'"

This came as a shock to the young woman, who grew up in a family that was active in left-wing causes and espoused co-existence with their Arab neighbors. "When my parents came from Algeria, they lived with the Arabs and it was fine," she says.

"I'm not concerned what the Arabs in France think," she adds. "I don't condemn them. But they want to bring the conflict into France. But what the intellectuals and the intelligentsia do is something else. The news is biased too because of the large numbers of Arabs."

She was appalled to find left-wing Israelis at the Sorbonne who vociferously demonstrated on behalf of the Palestinians. At first, Dorit, who was the only Jew in her department, was greatly helped by non-Jewish friends in debates and with the distribution of flyers.

"But slowly, I felt that the common base that we once had began to dissipate until I had only one or two gentile friends left. Then I thought, 'if I live only with Jews, I might as well come to Israel.'"

It was a natural step for the young woman, who in addition to being actively involved in the Jewish Scouts movement, was also a counselor in birthright for three years. She also did volunteer work to help augment the security in synagogues in Paris. "Many young people do it because the police protection isn't enough," she notes.

Her first stop in Israel was the Jewish Agency's Ulpan Etzion in Jerusalem. "It's a wonderful place, all the people are terrific, it's a family," she says. "The teachers are great." After completing the ulpan she began working as an intern at the Jewish Agency's high school program for youngsters from France at the Israel Goldstein Youth Village. She will shortly begin an MA program in international relations at the Hebrew University.

She is delighted to be in Israel. "In Europe people are reserved she says. Here people are open, talking to you, even on the street. This annoys some people, but it makes me feel that I'm at home! I can speak with whomever I want freely."

Written by: Shifra Paikin
Photo by: Shimi Nachtailer

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