Jewish Metropolitan Homelands

This article establishes three criteria for the identification of an ethnic homeland. First, the ethnic group in question must recognize that a particular area has a special significance for itself; it must feel "at home" in such an area. Second, the American public in general must recognize that a particular area holds special significance for a particular group. Third, the imprint of the ethnic group in question should be visible on the landscape. The article then argues that three metropolitan areas in the United States are ethnic Jewish homelands: the New York metropolitan area, with the Lower East Side as its historical heart; South Florida, with Miami Beach as its historical heart; and southern California, with Boyle Heights as its historical heart. In each of the three cases, the historical heart is no longer the principal area of Jewish settlement in the metropolitan area.