The hyena people

Based on interviews with Ethiopian immigrants in Israel, taken since 1985. The interviews show that Jewish life in Ethiopia has been closely interlinked with the life of the Christian community there. The Jews and Christians in Ethiopia have common languages, a common appearance, and most probably common origins. Religious rivalry with the Christians is an important part of Jewish identity, as rivalry with the Jews is in Christian identity. The Jews have been a socially ostracized group in Ethiopia, and victims of many prejudices. Ch. 3 (pp. 35-39), "The Jew as 'Buda': Hyena in Human Form, " dwells on a specific Ethiopian prejudice. Christians believe that Jews are supernatural entities, combining human and animal characteristics, and are able to devour Christians in some way. Ch. 7 (pp. 65-71), "The Twice-Disguised Hyena, " dwells on the situation of converted Jews in Ethiopia - they are in no way accepted by Christian society, and constitute a closed group between Jews and Christians. (From the Bibliography of the Vidal Sassoon International Center for the Study of Antisemitism - The Hebrew University of Jerusalem)