The "Kerensky Revolution" in Russia

How the "Kerensky Revolution" in Russia, shattered the illusion for World Jewry in 1917. 

As a retired teacher of TOEFL, history and  translation, I appreciate the nuance of historical shifts, the contrast between the decree of equality and the reality of the ensuing chaos is particularly striking.

The news of the February Revolution in 1917 (often associated with Alexander Fyodorovich Kerensky, who became its most prominent leader) was a watershed moment that initially felt like a messianic liberation for World Jewry, but soon "shattered the illusion" that legal equality alone could secure Jewish safety and identity.

1. The Great Illusion: Emancipation (March 1917)

The February Revolution brought an immediate, breathtaking end to centuries of state-sponsored oppression under the Tsars.

Abolition of the Pale of Settlement: 

Kerensky, as Minister of Justice, signed the decree on March 20, 1917, that abolished all "religious and national restrictions." Overnight, the Pale of Settlement—the region where Jews were forced to live—was gone.

Equality of Rights: 

Jews were granted the right to live anywhere, attend any university without quotas, and enter previously barred professions.

Symbolism: 

The Petrograd Soviet held a historic meeting on March 24, 1917—the eve of Passover. Jewish delegates explicitly compared the February Revolution to the Exodus from Egypt.

2. How the Illusion was Shattered

The "illusion" was the belief that a democratic, liberal Russia (under the Provisional Government) could protect the Jewish people from the deep-seated antisemitism of the masses and the structural collapse of the state.

The Return of the Pogroms: 

Despite the new laws, the collapse of central authority during the "Kerensky months" led to a resurgence of violence. By the summer of 1917, reports of pogroms returned to the Jewish press. Law and order had evaporated, and the legal equality granted in Petrograd did not translate to safety in the provinces.

The Myth of "Judeo-Bolshevism": 

As the Bolsheviks (under Lenin and Trotsky) gained ground, the Right-wing and monarchist forces increasingly used Jews as scapegoats. The high visibility of Jewish revolutionaries (like Leon Trotsky, Sverdlov, and Zinoviev) fueled a deadly narrative that the Revolution itself was a "Jewish plot," leading to catastrophic violence during the Civil War.

Disillusionment with Liberalism: 

Many Jews realized that the "Provisional Government" was exactly that—provisional and weak. The hope that Russia would become a Western-style pluralistic democracy shattered as the country polarized between the "Whites" (who often used antisemitism as a rallying cry) and the "Reds" (who offered protection but demanded the abandonment of Jewish religious and national identity).

The Shift to Zionism and Radicalism

Because the promise of the "Kerensky Revolution" failed to provide physical security, World Jewry's focus shifted dramatically:

Surge in Zionism: The realization that even a "free" Russia could not stop pogroms led to a massive surge in the Zionist movement. If equality in the Diaspora was an illusion, the only answer was a sovereign home.

The "Lesser Evil" Choice: By 1918, Russian Jews were forced to choose between the Bolsheviks—who at least officially outlawed antisemitism—and the White Army, which was perpetrating the largest massacres of Jews prior to the Holocaust.

The February Revolution proved that legal emancipation was not the same as social safety, a lesson that permanently altered the course of 20th-century Jewish history.