In a tiny office in the LeFrak City Jewish Center, Manash Shimonov thumbed through a tattered Russian-to-English dictionary. The 78-year-old scanned the pages of his trusted companion in silence, lips pursed.
Within 30 seconds he found his word: “difficult.” A wide smile covered his face.
“I’m sorry,” he said with a Russian accent. “I’m not good with English.”
He repeated the word, testing it out. “Yes, very difficult. Very difficult for us,” he said, nodding. “That’s why we come here and to Israel.”
Leaving Kokand
It pains Shimonov to talk about the town he left behind, but he understands his homeland always will be a part of him. Fortunately for him and several hundred other Buhkarian families living in LeFrak City, they are able to make a transition with help from the congregation — a congregation that shares the same past — at LeFrak City’s Jewish Center.
For Shimonov, life as a Bukharian Jew in Uzbekistan was indeed difficult. After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, Islamic fundamentalists took control of Uzbekistan, spurring a mass emigration of Jews to Israel and the United States.
After nearly 70 years in his homeland, Shimonov left behind the oasis city of Kokand, and his job as an engineering professor to seek religious freedom for his family.
Searching for Freedom
While the practice of Judaism and other religions is legally permitted in Uzbekistan — as long as the government is not criticized — young Jewish men were frequently harassed as they walked to temple. Amid this environment, Shimonov and his family immigrated to Queens in 1999.
“We have religious freedom here,” Shimonov said. “Every day we have people who come to synagogue.”
On a recent Friday evening as the sun began its descent, Shimonov greeted the elderly men who came to celebrate Shabbat.
As the men made their way into the prayer room for the elders, Shimonov busied himself with final preparations. For eight years he has volunteered at the Center, and is known to all. On this night he checked on the younger men as they slowly filed into a separate prayer room.
Everyone who came in stopped by Shimonov’s office. They touched the mezuzah on the doorframe before warmly greeting their fellow Uzbeki. Most of the elderly men wore suits and fedoras, and spoke in Russian. After everyone had arrived and service began, Shimonov joined his peers with his prayer book in hand.
An Influx of Jews
The LeFrak City Jewish Center, located on the northern side of the Long Island Expressway, is in one of the 18 apartment towers within LeFrak City. The construction of LeFrak City in 1966 provided affordable housing for thousands of working class families. However, the buildings were overrun by gang violence and drugs by the 1980s. The area saw a revival in the mid-1990s after a large number of immigrants – mainly Russians – moved in. With this Jewish influx, a synagogue was built in 1996.
Today, Russian, West African and other working-class families make up LeFrak’s 20,000 residents.
Shimonov opted for Queens because he believes Israel is not his country. “People from Israel are patriots,” he said.His daughter, son-in-law, and two grandchildren moved to Israel in 1991. Shimonov’s eldest grandson currently serves in the Israeli army. He worries for his family’s safety.
“We had a difficult life in Uzbekistan and now Israel too,” Shimonov said. Shimonov wasn’t the only Bukharian Jew to resettle in Queens.
Serving the Community
According to U.S. Department of State statistics, 70,000 Bukharian Jews left their homeland of Uzbekistan. More than 40,000 relocated to the Queens neighborhoods of Forest Hills, Rego Park and LeFrak City. In 2003, fewer than 30,000 Jews remained in Uzbekistan. Shimonov recently learned from a friend in Kokand that only 26 Jews live in his hometown.
Shimonov misses his village, and as he reflects on his long exile he wonders if he will ever return. He places the dog-eared, yellow-paged dictionary onto his desk and walks into another room. Here, Shimonov has made party preparations for Jewish World War II veterans.
“This is what I want to do,” he said. “I serve the community.”
To hear Shimonov talk about the LeFrak City Jewish Center, click below.
To hear Shimonov talk about the dangers of being a young Jew in Uzbekistan, click below.
http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/9/files/audio/2008/city-of-faith2.mp3
To hear Shimonov talk about a about friend back in Uzbekistan, click below.
http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/9/files/audio/2008/city-of-faith3.mp3
