History of Palestinians in Los Angeles

Los Angeles contains one of the largest concentrations of Palestinian Americans in the United States.^[1]

History

The population of the Palestinian diaspora in America is estimated to be between 150,000 and 250,000. Palestinians account for approximately 10 percent of the Arab-American community. ^[2]:18 The first wave of migration occurred in 1908 when the Ottoman Empire began mandating military service for Palestinians. ^[1] The second wave occurred in 1948 after the Nakba caused many Palestinians to leave their homes. The third and largest wave occurred in 1967 as a result of the Six-Day War in Israel. The vast majority of these immigrants left for economic and educational reasons. ^[1] Although the majority of Palestinian immigrants settled on the East Coast, economic opportunity brought large concentrations of Palestinians to Los Angeles. ^[1]

Demographics

As of 2010 there were 2,306 people of Palestinian origin living in Los Angeles County. Of them 52.9% were born in the USA and 47.1% were foreign born.^[3] Foreign born Palestinians in Los Angeles County originate mostly from Asia and the Middle East, followed by Latin America.^[3] However many are critical of the use of US Census data to record the population of Palestinians in the US. According to Kathleen Christison "No reliable immigration or census figures exist for Palestinian Americans. Because the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization service has only rarely recognized "Palestinian" as a nationality, meaningful immigration statistics are lacking."^[2]

Geography

The majority of the Arab American population is California resides in Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Diego County, San Benardino County, and San Mateo County.^[4] Of the total 817,455 Arab Americans in California, Palestinian Americans make up roughly 7%.^[5] This number totals to approximately 5,722 people. Of this number, 2,306 Palestinians live in Los Angeles county.^[6] However, this number is suggested to be significantly lower than the actual number of Palestinian Americans in this county because of census factors such as how the ethnicity question is listed and what options are given.^[5]

Culture

According to a survey of the Palestinian community, Palestinians are disproportionately engaged in the politics of their home country.^[2]:19 Although Vietnamese, Cuban, and Soviet diaspora groups also contain large numbers of refugees, Palestinians remain more connected to their homeland. This is thought to be caused by the foreign occupation and sense of alienation among Palestinians that doesn't exist in other foreign refugee populations.^[2]:19

The Palestinian diaspora contains varying levels of adjustment to American society, and thus is it difficult to make generalizations about the diaspora as a whole.^[2]:20 Factors commonly associated with assimilation, such as cross marriage and speaking English at home, have little correlation with a sense of Palestinian nationalism and identity.^[2]:20 Although cultural isolation from American society is rare for Palestinians, it is more common among women and the elderly.^[2]:21

Palestinians also maintain their sense of identity through participation in churches, mosques, and other social organizations.^[2]:29 Familial and village networks where Palestinians interact with others from their home city in Palestine further help to preserve political and cultural identity.^[2]:30 One such example in Los Angeles is Little Arabia, an ethnic enclave centered in Anaheim. The area contains mosques, churches, and local businesses that cater to Arab Americans.

Discrimination

Although most Palestinians report that they have not directly experienced ethnic discrimination,^[2]:27 several incidences in Los Angeles demonstrate that Palestinians still face prejudice. In 1985, Alex Odeh, a leader in the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, was murdered when Jewish extremists bombed his Santa Ana office.^[7] The bombing was thought to be a reaction to the murder of Leon Klinghoffer, a Jewish man killed in a Palestinian hijacking.^[8] Another incident occurred in 1987 when eight Palestinians were arrested in Los Angeles. They were charged under an antiquated anti-communism law called the McCarran-Walter Act that accused them of "supporting an organization that advocated world communism" for their possible association with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.^[9] According to the ACLU, the eight were "prosecuted for ideas, beliefs and thoughts of a magazine for which none have been writers or editors.”^[10]

Economy

As of 2010, there were 1,793 Palestinians over the age of 16 living in the Los Angeles County area, 65% of whom were in the labor force (employed or seeking employment).^[3] The unemployment rate at this time was 2.8%: much lower than the national average for the USA.^[3] The majority of Palestinians in LA work in the private sector (65% of workers), with 18.4% employed by the Government and 10.2% self-employed.^[3] The management, business, science and arts sector employs the highest percentage of Palestinians in LA, followed by sales and office work.^[3] Based on the 893 total households included in 2010 US Census data, the mean household income for Palestinians in LA County was $96,729: higher than the national average for the USA.^[3]

Education

The majority of Palestinians in LA enrolled in school attend elementary school, followed by graduate school and college. 46.8% of the Palestinian Diaspora in LA over 25 years old hold a bachelor’s degree or higher and 89.6% are educated to high school level or higher.^[3]

Institutions

The Palestinian diaspora in Los Angeles has a variety of organizations and institutional groups.

Political organizations with chapters in Los Angeles include: Al-awda, dedicated to the Palestinian right of return,^[11] Palestinian American Women’s Association, which works toward the empowerment and education of Arab American women and children,^[12] and American Muslims for Palestine, which works toward educating people about Palestine in order to motivate changes in US foreign policy regarding Palestine.^[13]

Los Angeles County also has humanitarian relief organizations such as: Palestinian Children’s relief, a non profit which focuses on providing medical relief and aid for younger Palestinians in the Middle East,^[14] and Islamic Relief which provides humanitarian aid to communities after disasters.^[15]

Irvine 11

On February 8, 2010, Michael Oren, Israel’s ambassador to Israel, was invited to speak at University of California, Irvine in a talk titled “US & Israel: Relations from a Historical and Personal Perspective.”^[16] 10 students from UC Irvine and UC Riverside interrupted the speech, demonstrating a nonviolent form of protest as they spoke out against Israel's refusal to acknowledge the deaths that had taken place in the Gaza Strip earlier that year.^[17] Eleven individuals in total were arrested, resulting in the name Irvine 11.^[18] The protestors went to court and they were ruled as guilty of two misdemeanors.^[19]

References