Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Politics and Social Change Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Politics and Social Change

"The Extraordinary Movement Of The Jews Of Great Britain": 1827-1831, C. S. Monaco Nov 2009

"The Extraordinary Movement Of The Jews Of Great Britain": 1827-1831, C. S. Monaco

C. S. Monaco

This article identifies a previously ignored social movement that existed in London during 1827–1831. The Jewish rights movement, as it will be called here, actually involved a coalition of Jews and Christians. During the movement’s initial phase, London Jews, led by Moses E. Levy (an activist from the United States), joined in solidarity with their oppressed brethren in Russia: their public protests against tsarist policies drew a broad response from the national and international press. This unparalleled movement influenced national political agendas and major legislative reforms, and resulted in striking changes within the Anglo-Jewish community. By utilising the modern social …


Port Jews Or A People Of The Diaspora? A Critique Of The Port Jew Concept, C. S. Monaco Jan 2009

Port Jews Or A People Of The Diaspora? A Critique Of The Port Jew Concept, C. S. Monaco

C. S. Monaco

This article offers a critical examination of the port Jew concept that was first introduced in the late 1990s. The port Jew "social type" has been construed as an alternate path to modernity, a phenomenon that was distinct from the European Haskalah and intrinsic to the supposedly liberal environment of port towns and cities. Drawing on a body of historical evidence (primarily from the Dutch and British Caribbean), this article questions key characteristics of the port Jew thesis and argues that a diaspora framework is better suited for conceptualizing the Jewish Atlantic world.