This is a sepia photograph depicting Yemenite immigrants dressed in costumes or traditional clothing riding horses throughout the streets of Tel Aviv. One of the riders is holding a sign that reads:
"And the city of Tel Aviv rang with joyous cries, in the parade of the Yemenite General Union – 'The Young People of the East'"
The sign is a variation on the verse from the Book of Esther (8:15): “And the city of Shushan rang with joyous cries.”
This photograph was probably taken during the Tel Aviv Purim Adloyada parade in 1931. Spectators can be seen on the side of the road and on the balcony of the house on the right. Neither the photographer’s name or the date is noted on the photograph.
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Purim - Purim is celebrated on the 14 Adar as the day the Jewish people were saved from destruction during the fourth century BCE. The heroine of the Purim story, Queen Esther, worked together with her uncle, Mordechai, to reverse the decree of genocide issued against the Jewish people by Haman, the vizier of Persia. It is the tradition on Purim to dress up in costumes, distribute small food packages known as mishloach manot, give charity, and listen to the reading of the Megilla – the Book of Esther.
Adloyada - The adloyada tradition began in 1912 in the early days of Tel Aviv. In the 1930s it was decided that each adloyada should have a theme. The adloyada tradition died out during World War II but was renewed in 1955. At the end of the 1960s the parade was moved from Tel Aviv to the neighbouring city of Holon. Today, these parades take place in many cities around Israel before or on Purim.
Yemenite General Union of Young Jews – This organisation, called “Tzeirey Hamizrach” in Hebrew, was founded in 1913 by young members of the Yemenite community in Israel who were inspired by the labour leaders of the time. The aim of the association was to organise Yemenite youth in order to improve the physical and spiritual condition of their community.
Aliya from Yemen – Yemenite immigration to Israel began in 1881 and continued until the outbreak of World War I. During that time, about 10% of the Jewish community of Yemen left, mostly moving to Jerusalem and Jaffa. In 1947, after the Partition Plan was approved by the United Nations, and from 1948, when the State of Israel was declared, life became exceedingly difficult for Jews living in Yemen. In May 1949 Israel launched Operation Magic Carpet and brought almost 50,000 Yemenite Jews to Israel. In the past decade, small numbers of the remaining Yemenite Jews have been brought to Israel in secret. Attention has recently been brought to the difficult situations that faced the new olim from Yemen. The first groups of new immigrants were sent to live in remote locations with harsh living conditions. They also found it very difficult to integrate with the European chalutzim (pioneers), who were leading the yishuv at the time. Another controversial issue is the claim that children of Yemenite immigrants were kidnapped from hospitals and transit camps in the early years of the State of Israel. A public inquiry commission concluded that these claims were not true, however the issue still remains in public discourse.
Jewish Community of Yemen – The Yemenite Jewish community has a unique religious and cultural tradition that distinguishes it from the Ashkenazi, Sephardi, and other Jewish communities. The Jewish community of Yemen dates back at least 2,000 years, if not earlier. One tradition holds that the first Jews to arrive in Yemen came as a result of Jeremiah’s prophecies of Israel’s capture, fleeing south to Yemen in 629 BCE. Another tradition connects the Jews of Yemen to the Queen of Sheba’s visit to King Solomon in around 900 BCE. From the second until the fifth centuries, Jews were prosperous in Yemen and the Jewish idea of monotheism was adopted by the ruling kingdom. When Yemen was conquered by Muslims, the Jews were considered protected dhimmi, who had to pay a tax and follow special laws but were allowed to practice Judaism freely. In the 1100s the Jews of Yemen were given the option of converting to Islam or being killed, and the community wrote to Maimonides (the Rambam) for halakhic (Jewish legal) guidance. The Rambam answered with the “Yemen Epistle” (Iggeret Teiman), which gave the Jews of Yemen permission to live as hidden Jews while seeming to convert to Islam. The Ottomans ruled Yemen from 1546–1629, and this was a peaceful time for the Jewish community. This ended, however, when Yemen was captured by the Qasimid dynasty in 1629 and began to persecute and exile Jews. Jewish literature, learning, and culture continued to flourish nonetheless. Yemenite Jews first immigrated to Israel in 1881. Their integration was problematic, however, and their Jewish identity was questioned by the Ashkenazi Jews of the Yishuv. By the founding of the State of Israel in 1948, 35,000 Yemenite Jews were living in Israel. After the State was declared, riots against the Jews broke out in Yemen, and Israel brought almost 50,000 Jews to Israel from Yemen in Operation Magic Carpet (also known as “On the Wings of Eagles”). Several thousand more Yemenite Jews were brought to Israel throughout the 1950s. Fewer than 50 Jews currently live in Yemen.
