Jerusalem - Post Report Question and Answers
Are there problems with ethnic, race/racial minorities or religious prejudices? Gender equality?
Yes. There is racial conflict here between Jews and Arabs, and also religious conflict between Christian Arabs and Muslims. Tensions have become particularly high during the war. If you are of a darker complexion, you will experience more scrutiny by local security personnel. Radical Jewish nationalists can be downright nasty- spitting on those who are not Jewish, etc. They represent a small minority of the population but they are there. - Sep 2024
Constantly, in my opinion, and it's far to complex to get into here. Just know that it's real and it will effect you and your life the entire time you live here. - Oct 2019
Yes. The extremest Jews and Muslims do not get along and are quite vocal about it, online and in person. Israelis are very racist and treat anyone who is not obviously white and Jewish like second class citizens. - Aug 2018
Yes. I was surprised at just how much vehement hatred there is on both the Palestinian and the Israeli sides, and about how public people are willing to be with those prejudices. It can be very uncomfortable to hear, but as a Jewish American, I do not feel like people on either side see me as part of that conflict. The hatred on the Arab side does not feel aimed at non-Israeli Jews at all. I do think there is some anti-Semitism in the expat community, due to the political situation, and that can feel a little harder to deal with. Gender does not feel like as much of an issue, nor does racial prejudice, at least for expats. - Apr 2018
Ha! Yes, and if you don't know this then you probably shouldn't bother coming here. - Dec 2016
Yes. All three. It wears on you. The key is to get out of the city and recharge. - Aug 2015
Yes. Individuals of Arab or Muslim descent are likely to experience significant prejudice in West Jerusalem, and Israel in general. There is a lot of anger and hatred in this city, and sometimes it gets to you, no matter how happy-go-lucky of a person you may be. - Aug 2015
Oh yeah, there are definite prejudices here. You will hear all about it from perfect strangers. - May 2015
Prejudice is very prevelant here in Jerusalem, more geared towards religious and cultural. Israelis are very supiscious of Arabs and it shows. There is always an underlying tension here. Also Israelis are not very open to outsiders and very hard to break the divide. - Mar 2014
BINGO! Tension, tension tension is ever present in the air. As one of my LES colleagues put it: "people here are too busy hating each other and being angry". You have the 3 major monotheist religious groups here but there are divisions among each one of them too. Then you have Israeli Jews, Israeli Arabs, Palestinians from the West Bank, Gaza, Armenians, Russians, Ethiopian Jews and Christians, etc, etc, etc all living in close quarters, fighting over who gets what land and who gets the what holy site for each religion, etc. It is fascinating and draining at the same time. - Aug 2013
Absolutely. Most Jewish Israelis in Jerusalem are conservative and nationalistic. Same goes for most Palestinians in East Jerusalem. All of the logical results, including occasional violent clashes, ensue from time to time. The city has a lot to offer, but it also has the underlying tension of a place struggled over by two peoples. - Jul 2013
Absolutely, especially with orthodox Jews. (Most Jews in Jerusalem are orthodox.) Young Palestinian men can have issues with women, men who look European, and persons walking dogs. (Palestinian Muslims don't like dogs at all.) - Feb 2009
