The Struggle for Soviet Jewry in American Politics

Until 1989 most Soviet Jews wanting to immigrate to the United States left on visas for Israel via Vienna. In Vienna, with the assistance of American aid organizations, thousands of Soviet Jews transferred to Rome and applied for refugee entry into the United States. The Struggle for Soviet Jewry in American Politics examines the conflict between the Israeli government and the organized American Jewish community over the final destination of Soviet Jewish ZmigrZs between 1967 and 1989.

Until 1989 most Soviet Jews wanting to immigrate to the United States left on visas for Israel via Vienna. In Vienna, with the assistance of American aid organizations, thousands of Soviet Jews transferred to Rome and applied for refugee entry into the United States. The Struggle for Soviet Jewry in American Politics examines the conflict between the Israeli government and the organized American Jewish community over the final destination of Soviet Jewish ZmigrZs between 1967 and 1989. A generation after the Holocaust, a battle surrounded the thousands of Soviet Jewish ZmigrZs fleeing persecution by choosing to resettle in the United States instead of Israel. Exploring the changing ethnic identity and politics of the United States, Fred A. Lazin engages history, ethical dilemma, and diplomacy to uncover the events surrounding this conflict. This book is essential reading for students and scholars of public policy, immigration studies, and Jewish history.

Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 Putting the Soviet Jewry Issue on the Public Agenda in the United States: From Indifference to the Jackson-Vanik Amendment
Chapter 3 Freedom of Choice and the Committee of Eight: Israel Versus the American Jewish Establishment
Chapter 4 Round Two of the Freedom of Choice Debate: The Israelis Fail Again
Chapter 5 The 1980s: The Soviet Jewry Advocacy Movement is Kept Alive
Chapter 6 The Reagan Gorbachev Summits: Moving Toward a Resolution of the Soviet Jewry Issue
Chapter 7 The Conflict over Turf in the American Soviet Jewry Advocacy Movement: The Dominance of the CJF
Chapter 8 The Final Struggle over Soviet Jewish Emigration: A Quota that Ended the Freedom of Choice Debate
Chapter 9 American Jews, Soviet Jewry Advocacy, Israel and American Politics: American Jewish Leaders Redefine Their Political Interests