The Jewish Community of Casablanca
Casablanca
In Arabic: الدار البيضاء / Dar El Beida
The largest city and harbor of Morocco.
Casablanca was known as Anfa during the Middle Ages. The city was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1468, and its Jewish community was dispersed. Moses and Dinar Anfaoui (i.e., "of Anfa") were among the signatories of the "Takkanot" of Fez in 1545. In 1750 the rabbi Elijah synagogue was built, but it was only in 1830 with the arrival of Jewish merchants, principally from Mogador, Rabat, and Tetuan, that the community really developed.
At the beginning of the 20th century there were 20,000 inhabitants, of whom 6,000 were Jews. There were then two synagogues, eight Talmud Torah schools, and four private schools. The first Alliance Israelite Universelle school, founded in 1897, was supported by the local notables. After the plunder in 1903 of Settat, an important center of the region, the community received 1,000 Jewish refugees. Later, Casablanca was itself devastated by tribes in rebellion, and a large number of its inhabitants were massacred in August 1907. Among the Jews, there were 30 dead, some gravely injured, and 250 women and children abducted.
By 1912 Casablanca became the economic capital of Morocco and, thereby, an important center for the Jews of Morocco, as well as for their coreligionists all over north Africa and Europe. The Casablanca community distinguished itself in all spheres by the intensity of its activities.
Many of its members held high positions in commerce, industry, and the liberal professions. The upper class of Casablanca's Jewish community founded numerous philanthropic societies to care for the needs of their coreligionists who arrived in successive groups from the interior of the country. The new arrivals, who were often without any means of livelihood, gathered in the "Mellah" district of the ancient Medina and lived in great poverty.
The "community council" provided them with various kinds of support, the funds for which were collected from a tax on meat and from private donations. The schools of the Alliance also provided free education. During World War II the anti-Jewish policies of the Vichy government restricted the rights of the Jews, especially in Casablanca, and even deprived them of their livelihood until the landing of the allies in 1942. After the liberation of Morocco, many Jews from the interior, often only the men, were attracted to Casablanca by the city's prosperity. For more than 35 years the community was led by Yachia Zagury (d. 1944). Principal spiritual leaders of the community had included Chayyim Elmalech (d. 1857), David Ouaknin (d. 1873), Isaac Marrache (d. 1905), Moses Eliakim (d. 1939), and Chayyim Bensussan.
Between 1948 and 1968 tens of thousands of Moroccan Jews went to Casablanca, either to settle there or to await emigration. Numerically, the drop in population resulting from the emigration was offset by the constant influx of Jews from the provinces so that the population figures of the Jews in the town hardly changed until 1962.
In 1948 the number of Jews in Casablanca was estimated at about 70,000; while census reports indicated that 74,783 Jews in 1951 (34% of Moroccan Jewry) and 72,026 Jews in 1960 (54.1% of the total Jewish population of Morocco) lived in Casablanca. However, in 1964 the number of Jews in Casablanca was estimated at about 60,000 out of the 85,000 Jews in Morocco. There followed a large-scale exodus of Jews from the town; their numbers were not replenished by new arrivals. Out of a total of 50,000 Moroccan Jews there remained an estimated 37,000 in Casablanca in 1967 and no more than 17,000 out of a total population of 22,000 Jews the following year. Until Morocco gained its independence, Casablanca Jews did not enjoy equal rights, and in 1949 only 600 of the 70,000 Jews in Casablanca had the right to vote in municipal elections. From 1956, however, when all of Moroccan Jewry acquired equal rights, Jews in Casablanca voted and were elected in municipal elections. In 1964 three Jewish representatives sat on the Casablanca city council, and in 1959 Meyer Toledano was elected deputy mayor. From 1948 to 1968 there were several instances of attacks on Jews, particularly on the eve of Moroccan independence (1956) and to a lesser extent after the Six Day War of June 1967. The authorities did their utmost to protect the Jewish population.
As the largest Jewish community in north Africa, Casablanca had many communal institutions, including schools of Alliance Israelite Universelle, Otzar Ha-Torah (which had 2,079 pupils in 1961), Em Ha-Banim, and ORT. There was also a rabbinical seminary Magen David, founded in 1947. A total of 15,450 pupils attended Casablanca Jewish educational establishments in 1961 but most of these institutions closed after 1965. The community had many charitable organizations, administered by the community committee. Until 1957 the Jewish agency maintained offices in the town, as did the Jewish national fund, the American Jewish Joint Distribution committee and WIZO, but all these were closed after Morocco became independent.
In 1997 there were 6,000 Jews living in Morocco, 5,000 of them in Casablanca.
There are synagogues, "mikvaot", old age homes and kocher restaurants in Casablanca. The Chabad, ORT, Alliance and Otzar Ha-Torah schools have remained active. The Chabad movement is active there. Religious education is given in the Lycee Yeshiva, "kollel" of Casablanca. Since 1963 there have been Jewish newspapers.
Leo Levi
(Personality)Leo Levi (1912-1982) Musicologist.
Born in Casale Monferrato, Italy, he settled in Eretz Israel in 1936. His studies focus on ethnomusicology and liturgical music, especially the traditions of the Italian and Mediterranean Jewish communities. His research bears the last witness of these traditions since it was carried out after the communities had ceased to exist. Died in Jerusalem, Israel.
Gabi Oren Oknine
(Personality)Gabi Oren Oknine (b. 1940) Industrialist.
Born in Casablanca, Morocco, he came to Israel in 1948 with his family. His father, a shoemaker, settled in Jaffa and opened a small workshop and shop. Young Oknine completed his army service and joined the family business. Together with his brothers Danny, Michael and Motti he turned the small workshop into a large modern factory under the name "Gali", which has been for many years a leading Israeli brand.
David Bouzaglo
(Personality)David Bouzaglo (1903-1975), chazan, born in Casablanca, Morocco, he came to Israel in 1965. He had an outstanding memory and memorized prayers, almost all the Bible and many chapters from the Mishnah, Talmud and Zohar. This talent helped him when, in 1949, he became blind. He was a well-known poet and an authority on classical Andalusian music. His authority on music was accepted even beyond the Jewish community and he was often consulted by famous Moroccan musicians. He composed many poems in Hebrew and Arabic which were preserved in manuscripts. Some of them were published in 1980. He died in Israel.
Yosef Asulin, Casablanca, Morocco, 2018
(Video)Yosef Asulin was born in Casablanca, Morocco. In this interview he recalls his family history, originally from small villages and towns in the Atlas Mountains, his life in Casablanca and Tangier before his immigration to Israel in 1962, and then his life in Israel.
The Oster Visual Documentation Center, ANU - Museum of the Jewish People. The film was produced as part of the Seeing the Voices project, 2019
Marie Maman, Casablanca, Morocco, 2018
(Video)Marie Maman was born in Casablanca, Morocco. In this interview she recounts her childhood in Morocco and then her experience in Israel as a new immigrant in the 1950s. Marie Maman is married to Amram Maman - see separate testimony.
The Oster Visual Documentation Center, ANU - Museum of the Jewish People. The film was produced as part of the Seeing the Voices project, 2019
Eliezer Elmakaies, Casablanca, Morocco, 2018
(Video)Eliezer Elmakaies was born in Casablanca, Morocco. In this testimony he recounts his family's daily life and his childhood in Casablanca, and then their immigration to Israel in 1956, and his life in Beit Shemesh and Ramat Hasharon in Israel.
The Oster Visual Documentation Center, ANU - Museum of the Jewish People. The film was produced as part of the Seeing the Voices project, 2019
Sidney Chriqui recounts his childhood in Casablanca, Morocco
(Video)Sidney Chriqui, a resident of Valley Glen, CA., was born in Casablanca, Morocco. In this testimony from 2013 he recounts his childhood in Morocco. He immigrated to USA in 1948.
This film is part of the Testimonies produced by Sarah Levin for JIMENA's Oral History and Digital Experience. JIMENA - Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa - is a San Francisco, CA., based non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of culture and history of the Jews from Arab Lands and Iran, and aims to tell the public about the fate of Jewish refugees from the Middle East.
The Oster Visual Documentation Center, Beit Hatfutsot, courtesy of JIMENA
Max Barchichat recounts his life from Casablanca, Morocco, to California, USA
(Video)Max Barchichat, a resident of Van Nuys, CA., was born in Casablanca, Morocco. In this testimony from 2013, he recounts his life from Casablanca to his immigration to Israel in 1948, and then in the USA' after 1961.
This film is part of the Testimonies produced by Sarah Levin for JIMENA's Oral History and Digital Experience. JIMENA - Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa - is a San Francisco, CA., based non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of culture and history of the Jews from Arab Lands and Iran, and aims to tell the public about the fate of Jewish refugees from the Middle East.
The Oster Visual Documentation Center, Beit Hatfutsot, courtesy of JIMENA
Amram Maman Recounts His Childhood in Tafillat and Casablanca, Morocco, 2018
(Video)Amram Maman was born in Tafilalt in the Atlas Mountains, Morocco, in 1932. His family lived in extreme poverty. They moved to Casablanca and Amram grew up there. At a very young age he lost his father and his mother had to work and support the family. Amram raised himself and eventually found a job as a carpenter's apprentice, and even there he had to survive in difficult conditions. He lived in Casablanca during World War II and experienced the bombings. At the age of 18 he met Mary and married her. They immigrated to Israel with their two children and experienced difficulties in assimilation, until they settled in Kiryat Shemona, where Amram found work in a kibbutz as a carpenter. Amram Maman is married to Marie Maman - see separate testimony.
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This testimony was produced as part of “Seeing the Voices” – the Israeli national project for the documentation of the heritage of Jews of Arab lands and Iran. The project was initiated by the Israeli Ministry for Social Equality, in cooperation with The Heritage Wing of the Israeli Ministry of Education, The Yad Ben Zvi Institute, and The Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot.
Andre Chriqui recounts his life in Casablanca, Morocco, during WW2 and the 1950s
(Video)Andre Chriqui, a resident of North Hollywood, CA., was born in Casablanca, Morocco. In this testimony from 2013, he vividly remembers life under Vichy rule, when American soldiers arrived in the Casablanca Port on November 8, 1942, Moroccan Independence in 1956, and his ultimately move to Los Angeles as the socioeconomic conditions deteriorated in Casablanca.
Andre Chriqui was born and grew up in Casablanca, Morocco and lived there until at the age of 33. He and his family lived on the 5th floor of an apartment building that had a nice view of the Casablanca Port. He recalls the morning siren on November 1942, when American warships appeared at the port and trembled the city. He remembers American soldiers walking to Fedala (north of Casablanca) and on the way distributing candies and chocolate to local children who were following the soldiers. Andre recalls the day just “like yesterday,” and belatedly learned that the arrival of Americans that day saved the fate of Casablanca Jews as the French Vichy government in Morocco was about to implement the deportation of Moroccan Jews to concentration camps.
Andre recalls that life in Casablanca was not easy as everything – food, clothes, utensils, etc. – was rationed. Before the Vichy regime took power, Andre felt French. At the same time, he and his family loved the King of Morocco (Mohammed the 5th) and firmly believed that the King protected Moroccan Jews. Andre stated that, “we all loved him… we prayed for him.” Andre also remembers having a good relationship with his Muslim neighbors stating that, “they liked us.” The problem, Andre recalls, emerged after the French Vichy government took over and imposed a variety of restrictions on Moroccan Jews.
Andre studied at the Alliance Israélite Universelle and observed Shabbat with his family. Although he was secular at the time, his mother was religiously observant and literate in Hebrew text. Andre recalls that Jewish life in Casablanca was “free and not free at the same time.” Free, because the different ethnic and religious sectors “lived in harmony,” and yet not free, due to the Vichy government singling out Jews for restrictive measures.
Andre remembers that the establishment of the State of Israel made his community happy, but the Chriqui family decided not to make Aliyah. Once Andre was married with a child in 1953, he started to contemplate his future in Morocco and did not have a positive outlook after Moroccan Independence in 1956. Although possessing a passport was extremely difficult and taking assets out of country was strictly forbidden, Andre and his wife decided to leave the country for a better future. He and his family first moved to Montreal, Canada, where his sister-in-law had already resided. Years later, their American visa was finally settled and the family subsequently relocated in Los Angeles, California.
This film is part of the Testimonies produced by Sarah Levin for JIMENA's Oral History and Digital Experience. JIMENA - Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa - is a San Francisco, CA., based non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of culture and history of the Jews from Arab Lands and Iran, and aims to tell the public about the fate of Jewish refugees from the Middle East.
The Oster Visual Documentation Center, Beit Hatfutsot, courtesy of JIMENA