Constructing Ethnicity: Myth of Return and Modes of Exclusion among Israelis in Toronto

Drawing upon data from ninety intensive interviews and from participatory observations of various social gatherings of Israelis living in Toronto, this study explores the role of the desire to return to the mother‐country in the production of a distinctive ethnic community. Although plans to return rarely materialize, they do contribute to both the individual’s psychological well‐being and the group’s need to defy assimilation. On a personal level, the myth of return enables the immigrant to live in two social worlds; on a social level, the myth creates a collective fantasy which leads to excluding members from outsiders. The research identifies modes of self‐exclusion such as preservation of language, reinforcement of romanticized biographies and enhancement of stereotypes, all of which are instrumental in reconstructing Israeliness in the Diaspora. The rise of special “Israeli” organizations such as clubs, a radio station, schools, newspapers and synagogues, represent a resistance to integrate into the organized Jewish community. Modes of exclusion and the emergence of Israeli ethnic organizations are constantly energized by the individual, as well as the collective, objective to return to the homeland. Paradoxically, the myth of return, rather than contributing to the fragility of Israel ethnic networks, provides the very foundation upon which this ethnic community is constructed.