Opposition leader of the Israeli Knesset Tzipi Livni's discussion 2 weeks ago of Israeli-Diaspora relations in the context of the current college-age generation got me thinking about how Israeli and American Jews really see each other. In my 20 years of experience in the Jewish community, I have found that a prominent cultural divide exists between American and Israeli Jewish youth. Usually it results in nothing more serious than playful self-mockery aimed at the diversity of the international Jewish community. In other instances, though, it speaks to a gap in understanding and a potentially irreversible break in the unity of modern Judaism, for which the consequences are much more dire.When I was young, I was a little embarrassed by the nerdy, socially awkward stereotype I felt dominated Jewish culture. There weren't a lot of Jewish kids on my school sports teams; we mostly stuck to band and Model United Nations. My mom would reassure me by pointing to our cousins in the east-not east to New York City, located a few miles southeast of my Jersey hometown-but all the way east to Israel, where strapping young Jews represented a different manifestation of the Jewish character.

My earliest understanding of Israeli youth was similarly grounded in the superficial. Israelis were physically superior to American Jews. They didn't have acne, and they weren't permanently pale from the glow of their video game consoles, because their skin was brown from years of Mediterranean sun. They were athletic and muscular from army training. As I grew older and met a few Israelis, my stereotype of Israeli youth was only solidified by my experiences. While I pored over SAT practice exams, I imagined my counterparts in Israel-the cliché Sabra youth-tanned, gun-slinging and militant, smoking hookah on some Tel Aviv beach. They were not concerned with the soul-sucking and arduous college admissions process. They were bound for the army, preparing to face dangers I would never encounter, and my priorities seemed trivial in comparison.

Whether or not the Israeli stereotype is generally true, it has an impact on the way American Jews view Israeli Jews precisely because American Jews utilize such stereotypes and make judgments based on them. I know far too many Jewish girls who reject Israeli guys because they are intimidated by their stereotype. A quick text-message poll I conducted among several young American Jewish women confirmed this.

In other realms, the cultural divide exists and is the source of a rift within modern Judaism. In politics, American and Israeli Jewish youth often come into conflict. Young American Jews, often left-leaning, are at times critical of Israeli policy toward Palestinians. In turn, Israeli Jews, who are more right-leaning, claim that American Jews only vaguely understand the political situation that is part of their daily life. Some believe their participation in the army gives their views added credibility. This disconnect has been the subject of several recent articles in The New York Times and Tablet Magazine.

Such discourse is increasingly common at a time when Israel faces international condemnation in light of the 2008-2009 Gaza War and the Turkish flotilla raid. Israelis call on support from the American Jewish community as they have in the past but are met with the reality of a young generation that upholds a less-romanticized view of Israel. To our generation of American Jews, Israel is viewed less of a victim and more as a major power player on the world stage and is a significant technological and military force in the Middle East. Coupled with the previously described disconnect between American and Israeli Jewish youth, the differing political opinions of these groups potentially widens the gap in understanding.

What is less clear about this cultural phenomenon is how permanent it will be. Growing economic cooperation between the two countries and participation in Birthright and similar programs helps to break down these cultural stereotypes by exposing American college-aged Jews to the realities of Israeli life and society. As is the case with any prejudice, education and experience are often effective counteractive measures.

However, here, because so many students have visited or lived in Israel, studied abroad there, have Israeli family members and friends or are Israelis themselves, there is an exchange of experiences that does not occur on other college campuses. Because of this exchange, Brandeis students are more attuned to the realities of Israeli life and see past the narrow Sabra stereotype. Jews elsewhere should adopt and expand upon this cultural exchange to communicate more effectively and learn from one another.