By
– September 1, 2011
Sometimes a trip is just a trip. But to Shaul Kelner, a professor at Vanderbilt University, tourism is serious stuff, cajoling travelers into heightened states of awareness and playing a central role in the formation of a land’s cultural politics and collective identity.
The subject of Kelner’s fascination is Birthright Israel, the organized tours that have taken more than 200,000 Jewish young adults from North and South America, Western Europe, Oceania, and the former Soviet Union on 10-day trips through Israel since December 1999 to the tune of more than half a billion dollars.
And what do we have to show for it?
Legions of young adults between the ages of 18 and 26 who feel an unshakeable bond with Israel, regardless of their upbringing. After several years of serious scholarship, Kelner concludes that tourism is the great equalizer, an opportunity for institutions to compete for the ability to represent a people.
Though not the first book to explore Birthright’s impact, Tours That Bind approaches the subject academically, analyzing how Israel co-opts the Jewish diaspora to strengthen its nation-state.
The subject of Kelner’s fascination is Birthright Israel, the organized tours that have taken more than 200,000 Jewish young adults from North and South America, Western Europe, Oceania, and the former Soviet Union on 10-day trips through Israel since December 1999 to the tune of more than half a billion dollars.
And what do we have to show for it?
Legions of young adults between the ages of 18 and 26 who feel an unshakeable bond with Israel, regardless of their upbringing. After several years of serious scholarship, Kelner concludes that tourism is the great equalizer, an opportunity for institutions to compete for the ability to represent a people.
Though not the first book to explore Birthright’s impact, Tours That Bind approaches the subject academically, analyzing how Israel co-opts the Jewish diaspora to strengthen its nation-state.
Jaclyn Trop is a Los Angeles-based freelance reporter.
