Perceptions of the problems of the Jewish population in Odessa journalism in the 50-60 of 19th century

Abstract

The article discusses the problems faced by Jewish communities in the middle of the 19th century and their reflection in the Odessa liberal press. The regional aspect of the issue has been selected concerning the following factors. First, the Committee on Determining Measures for the Indigenous Conversion of Jews in Russia came into force during this period. That is why the attention of the authorities was drawn to the south of the country because it was a place of residence of a large Jewish population group. Besides, Odessa became one of the leaders of Haskala. At this point, the establishment of national Jewish journalism began, and talented writers, journalists, and publicists merged their forces to reform all areas of the cultural and social life of Jewish communities. Considering the problems of the existence of the Jewish population in the Russian Empire, the activities of M. I. Pirogov cannot be ignored. While serving as the head of the Odessa educational district, he didn’t only draw the attention to the periodical press which emphasized the problems of the Jews, but also personally contributed to the discussion of these problems. M. I. Pirogov made a significant contribution to the creation of the national Jewish press, which was published in Russian, he also defended the opening of the magazine “Rassvet” from some authorities. On the pages of this newspaper, during the hard conditions of censorship, journalists were still able to raise the issues of Jewish communities within the country. Issues of inter-confessional conflicts were also discussed in the journal. With the example of Western Europe and the United States, the magazine provided an analysis of state reforms aimed at promoting Jewish rights. This analysis provided

an opportunity to move on with a discussion on the necessary reforms in the country. Planned step-by-step conversations, initiated by the Jewish society itself, would, in the opinion of the magazine’s publishers, create a favorable atmosphere for governmental action aimed at emancipating Jews. The great attention that “Rassvett” has given to reform issues has pushed one of the editors of this edition, O. I. Georgievskiy to the writing of the socio-historical work “Essays on the Contemporary History of Judaism”. Without prejudice to Judaism as a religious doctrine, he reasonably argued for the rejection of his most outdated norms. The author of “An Essay on the Contemporary History of Judaism” advocated the joint training of representatives of different denominations, which, in his opinion, would help to eliminate any national prejudices. Thus, the work raised the issue of the elimination of the sediment band, and thus one of the main restrictions on the disappearance of the national character. And, if the “Rassvet” was mainly highlighting the idea of the necessary increase of the social activity of Jews as a pledge of reforms, the “Essay on the Contemporary History of Judaism” considered the elimination of the habitation lane as the first step on the path of reform by the state authorities. Thus, liberal journalists from Odessa contributed fully to the improvement of the cultural and educational level of the Jewish population, upholding the idea of strengthening cultural and historical ties between people. They were deeply convinced that only fruitful cooperation with the state on the one hand, and preservation of national identity on the other, would make a serious step forward in the emancipation of Jews in all European countries.