Ten Days of Taglit-Birthright: Argentinian Heritage Tourism and Israeli Nationalism

Taglit, also known as Birthright, is a free 10-day trip to Israel offered to all Jews in the world between the ages of 18 and 32. Taglit-Birthright can be understood as a nation-building program, which inculcates a nationalistic vision of Jewish peoplehood on participants. This thesis critically analyzes what this nationalistic vision entails through an interpretive study. For that purpose, ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with former Taglit participants from Argentina. Thereby, the thesis analyzes Taglit’s vision of homeland and people, as well as the role of rituals in promoting nationalistic stances. By using Argentinian’s subjective experiences as a “breaching mechanism” to understand Israeli nationalism, the thesis contributes not only to literature on Taglit, but also to literature on nationalism and Zionism. The thesis concludes that Taglit-Birthright promotes a vision of Jewish peoplehood which (1) claims politically contested territory as part of a Jewish...Show moreTaglit, also known as Birthright, is a free 10-day trip to Israel offered to all Jews in the world between the ages of 18 and 32. Taglit-Birthright can be understood as a nation-building program, which inculcates a nationalistic vision of Jewish peoplehood on participants. This thesis critically analyzes what this nationalistic vision entails through an interpretive study. For that purpose, ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with former Taglit participants from Argentina. Thereby, the thesis analyzes Taglit’s vision of homeland and people, as well as the role of rituals in promoting nationalistic stances. By using Argentinian’s subjective experiences as a “breaching mechanism” to understand Israeli nationalism, the thesis contributes not only to literature on Taglit, but also to literature on nationalism and Zionism. The thesis concludes that Taglit-Birthright promotes a vision of Jewish peoplehood which (1) claims politically contested territory as part of a Jewish homeland and (2) justifies militarism and Jewish statehood by framing it as a necessary response to the Nazi holocaust.Show less

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Ten Days of Taglit-Birthright: Argentinian Heritage Tourism and Israeli Nationalism