“Easier to Understand but More Difficult to Digest”: Student Experiences with Israeli Yom HaZikaron Cartoons

Abstract

Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Remembrance Day, has received considerable scholarly attention, with research published about how the country’s youth understand the day but there has been no comparable data from diaspora Jews. This article presents findings about how a cohort of Canadian Jewish teenagers participating in a gallery walk of Israeli political cartoons provided new ways of thinking about and relating to Yom HaZikaron. The data revealed that students care about Yom HaZikaron but struggle to form a connection to the day. Political cartoons that depicted personal loss led students to form new insights into the day and to new associations and connections with Israelis.