====== Jewish Farmers In Belarus During The 1920s ======
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Smilovitsky, Leonid. "The Jewish Farmers in Belarus During the 1920s." //Jewish Political Studies Review// Jerusalem. Vol. 9, No 1-2. (1997): Pages 59-72.

Available from:
  * [[http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/newsletter/jewish_farmers.htm|JewishGen Belarus Newsletter November 2002]]
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===== Notes =====

==== History ====
  * Jews enter Belarus in late 14th centure with permission of Vitovt, Prince of the Great Kingdom of Lithuania.
    * Immigrated from Western Europe, mostly Germany and Poland
  * 1917 Russian revolution. Civil war and pogroms take place; result in Jews supporting Bolshevik Party
    * Jews attempt to emigrate. Civil war stopped emigration.
  * New Economic Policy
    * abolition of private trade; restrictions on small artisans.  Depriving rights (Lishentsy), "persons without any definite kind of occupation"
    * Former Jewish merchants, dealers, trademen, shopkeepers, mediators, melameds (teachers), craftsmen, handicraft workers
    * These Jews lived with the help of remitances from abroad
  * Soviets try to solve Jewish poverty by allowing them to be farmers
    * Insufficient land in Belarus to add Jewish farmers.  
    * Therefore, it was necessary to "evict" all Jews who wanted to be farmers
    * Early Jewish collective farms created naturally between 1918-1920.  Founded by groups of workers, craftsmen, petty merchants, dealers and shopkeepers to save themselves from famine
    * In 1921, new Jewish collective farms stopped
    * Between 1924-1925, 80 Jewish collective farms created in BSSR
  * Aid for Jewish farming came from
    * American-Jewish United Agricultural Corporation (Agrojoint)
    * Society for Spreading Farming and Handicraft amoung Jews
    * Jewish Colonial Society
    * Resettlement of one Jewish family cost between 1800-2200 rubles
  * Jews were over 20% of the Belarus Communist Party, but never more than 10% of the population.

==== Commerce ====
  * Jews living in cities and towns interacted with the villare and rural economies
    * trade in the forest industries
    * leather industries
    * Peddling village produce (flax, hemp and bristles) in the city
    * agriculture
  * After Revolution, high unemployment
    * Blacksmiths were better off
    * Tanners, dressmakers, tailors, shoemakers and others were jobless