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expressed this sentiment and reported that they viewed these immigrants as “a social prob-
lem.” The most tolerant group consisted of the secular Ashkenazim, and the least tolerant
groups, Mizrahim and Arabs.
This attitude declined steeply. In the years immediately after arriving, Russian immigrants
posed a threat in the labor market, competing for jobs with upwardly mobile Mizrahim and
Arabs, as well as diverting resources away from their sectors of the population. In practice,
however, the cost of immigration was low, and the overall balance in expenditures was quite
positive. The immigrants not only earned their own living but added a large productive popu-
lation and new consumer group, which helped Israel's economy grow. Everyone benefi ted
from this development. Although a small proportion of these immigrants proved transient, as
a group they seemed to assimilate remarkably well into Israeli society.
In contrast to most previous immigrants, arrivals from the former Soviet Union often ex-
pressed the feeling that Israeli society was less cultured than their old one. They also had the
sophistication to create their own institutions. Soon there were fi fty Russian-language peri-
odicals, dozens of social welfare, cultural, and other organizations, and even sports clubs and
enrichment classes for students.
At times, these immigrants also created largely ethnic political parties. Natan Sharansky,
who had been imprisoned in the Soviet Union for his Zionist beliefs before being released
to immigrate, emerged as a major leader, although he eventually quit electoral politics. The
Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Is Our Home) Party, led by another immigrant from the former Soviet
Union, Avigdor Lieberman, is largely — though not explicitly — an “ethnic” party of Russian-
speaking immigrants and their descendants. While only a minority of the immigrants support
the party, they form a signifi cant proportion of the community.
These institutions simultaneously eased the integration of the immigrants, represented
their interests, and preserved a subculture. The longer immigrants are in Israel, however, the
more Israeli they feel. Generational transition and cross-group marriage further dilute group
identity.
Just as Israeli society affected the immigrants, the Russian immigration wave affected Is-
raeli society, moving the country toward more secular positions on various issues. Economic
advantage and consumer convenience had already led more restaurants and stores to stay
open on the Sabbath (from sundown on Friday night until sunset on Saturday night), and this
tendency was increased.
Two holidays celebrated in Russia —Victory Day, marking the end of World War II, and
New Year's Eve (called Sylvester in Israel)—became increasingly popular events in Israel. Non-
kosher food (food not following Jewish dietary laws), especially pork products that Soviet Jews
had eaten in the old country, also became more common. Other effects included a higher
average consumption of alcohol— traditionally lower in Israel than in comparable European
countries. And a few immigrants, with associations in the highly structured Russian under-
world, brought their wealth to Israel and laundered money there.
In the beginning of the wave of immigration, the vast majority of the immigrants from the
former Soviet Union were Jewish according to Jewish law. But by the late 1990s, many were
technically not Jewish according to Jewish religious law — that is, they were the children of
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