The Jews: An Indigenous People

by Ben M. Freeman

In The Jews: An Indigenous People, the final instalment of his seminal Jewish Pride trilogy, Ben M. Freeman takes readers on a powerful journey through 3,000 years of Jewish history. Exploring the origins of Jewish identity and practice and their resonance today, Freeman expertly weaves together anthropology and archaeology while examining globally recognised criteria for indigeneity. Brace yourself as this book boldly reclaims the Jewish narrative, affirming without doubt: Jews are indigenous to Israel.

Genres: Jewish, Judaism, Nonfiction

368 pages, Paperback

Published February 27, 2025

About the author

Ben M. Freeman is a Jewish leader, a Jewish thinker and a Jewish educator.​

Born in Scotland, Ben is a gay Jewish author and internationally renowned educator focussing on Jewish identity, combatting antisemitism and raising awareness of the Holocaust.

Now living in Hong Kong, he now heads up the Humanities Team at a progressive international school in Hong Kong and lectures on antisemitism at local universities. He regularly carries speaking engagements educating, inspiring and empowering both Jewish and non-Jewish people from all over the world.

Reviews

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible and enlightening. An exploration of Jewish history, detailing how and why Israel is at its core.
"Judaism should be seen not as a religion, but as a rich culture and civilisation deeply intertwined with our land, God and peoplehood" p253

[Omar · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ben M. Freeman's The Jews: An Indigenous People is a provocative entry in his "Jewish Pride" trilogy, arguing that Jews constitute an indigenous people with ancestral and cultural roots in the land of Israel. The book has ignited significant discourse, praised for its empowerment agenda but critiqued for methodological and political limitations.

Selective Application of Indigeneity Criteria:
- Freeman dismisses Palestinian indigeneity claims, arguing Arab cultural origins trace to the Hejaz (Saudi Arabia) and that conquest cannot confer indigenous status. This overlooks scholarly views that multiple groups can hold indigenous ties to one land.
- His rejection of the UN's "non-dominant" criterion appears politically motivated, sidestepping debates about power dynamics in modern Israel.

Controversial Indigeneity Criteria in Freeman's Framework:
1) Land-Based Origin:
- Freeman's position: Jews became a people in Israel; Abraham's Mesopotamian origin irrelevant.
- Critique: Palestinian cultural genesis in Israel is equally valid.
2) Dominance vs. Indigeneity:
- Freeman's position: Achieving self-determination does not negate indigeneity.
- Critique: Ignores how state power complicates indigenous solidarity.
3) Diaspora Identity:
- Freeman's position: Diaspora Jews retain indigeneity via cultural continuity.
- Critique: Risk of instrumentalizing indigeneity for political goals.

Political Implications:
- The book weaponizes indigeneity to delegitimize Palestinian narratives, mirroring tactics used by figures like Mahrinah von Schlegel, who calls pro-Palestinian comparisons to Native Americans "co-optation".
- While critiquing anti-Zionist Jews (e.g., Ariel Gold), Freeman neglects internal Jewish diversity, particularly Mizrahi/Sephardic experiences.

Methodological Gaps:
1) Overreliance on Jewish Sources: Freeman prioritizes Jewish textual traditions (Tanakh, liturgy) while under-engaging non-Jewish historiography.
2) Conflation of Terms: Uses "decolonization" to describe Jewish return to Israel, a framing contested by scholars who associate decolonization with dismantling settler states.
3) Incomplete Solidarity Vision: Though urging Jewish-indigenous alliances, Freeman offers few concrete steps for collaboration, ignoring issues like Palestinian rights or Native land restitution.

[Shonna · Rating 5 out of 5]

The perfect book to read during the month of Passover.

[Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read giving a short history of the Jews’ long history. Presents a thoughtful explainer for what any Jew growing up in the diaspora likely has felt at one point of our lives - what does being Jewish mean? The author does a great job answering that and providing evidence for his claim.

Page 255: “Acknowledging and embracing our authentic indigenous identity is to assert our right to be different to - not better or worse than - those around us. As Vlad recalls, the Soviet Union offers an extreme example of the choices the non-Jewish world often forces Jews to make. The very real threat emanating from the government forced Jews to try to forge papers so they could legally pass as non-Jews. This is what Jew-hate does to us. It forces us to choose, or worse, to hide. In the West, for hundreds of years, Jews have been coerced into hiding and forced to shed those very things which make us distinct and different. American Jews are no different (nor were the German Jews in the 19th century). To make it means being accepted into non-Jewish society, but on its terms. We obviously have to recognise the inherent power dynamic which exists between the majority and minority in the Diaspora, but that does not mean we should erase our differences and deny our indigeneity.”

[Brian Katz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is well research and written to appeal to those who are not up on the history of Judaism and the current day propaganda war being waged on the internet.
Ben does a fine job in providing the history, the current narrative as well as tools for those who struggle to use in order to strengthen their resolve.

[Bobby Newman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really well written analysis of the U.N. concept of "indigenous people," showing where the definition makes sense and where it falls down, and showing how the Jews fit the definition. The only thing I would have liked to see is more archeological evidence showing the huge spans of time the people's lived in the area over the past few thousand years.

[Jocelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read with some very valid points.