Lena Russovsky was Shlepped to Israel from Moscow at 9 Years Old, Now She's a Journalist, Activist, and Entrepreneur

In this episode of Yalla, Let’s Go!, Erica and Abbey sit down with Lena Russovsky — Soviet-born Israeli journalist, KAN broadcaster, biotech researcher, and founder of “Russian Women Without a Sense of Humor,” one of Israel’s largest online communities with over 56,000 members — for a conversation about Russian aliyah, immigrant identity, and building a life in Israel. Lena made aliyah from Moscow in 1991 at age nine, arriving just as the Soviet Union was collapsing. She grew up as part of the “1.5 generation” — Soviet-born children who immigrated young and came of age as Israelis — and has spent her career advocating for Russian-speaking olim, amplifying immigrant women’s voices, and building community across Israeli society. Also in the episoide: The Soviet Jewish immigration experience and what the 1991 aliyah wave was really like Discrimination and harassment faced by Russian-speaking women in Israel What the melting pot ideal got wrong — and why immigrant identity can’t be erased Building a 56,000-member community from a moment of rage on national TV The 1.5 generation: growing up between two cultures, two languages, two identities Returning to Russia 20 years later and feeling nothing Aliyah advice for Russian-speaking immigrants making the move today What freedom really means when you grew up Jewish in the Soviet Union This is a powerful conversation about immigration, identity, and the courage it takes to build a life among your people. Subscribe for more conversations with people who live, work, build, and stay in Israel. #LenaRussovsky #RussianAliyah #SovietJews #Israel #Aliyah #1point5Generation #RussianOlim #JewishImmigration #IsraeliSociety #IsraeliWomen #YallaLetsGo #LifeInIsrael #CommunityBuilding #JewishIdentity #FormerSovietUnion KEY TOPICS  0:00 – Intro 1:09 – Who Is Lena Russovsky: Russian Olah, Journalist, Activist, Community Builder 3:12 – Making Aliyah from the Soviet Union in 1991 4:58 – Arriving in Israel as the Soviet Union Collapsed 7:17 – How She Built a Career in Biotech, Broadcasting, and Activism 8:46 – Would She Be the Same Person If She’d Stayed in Russia? 9:50 – “Russian Women Without a Sense of Humor”: Why She Founded the Community 11:56 – Discrimination Against Russian-Speaking Immigrant Women in Israel 14:30 – Inside a 56,000-Member Community for Russian-Speaking Olim 15:35 – The 1.5 Generation and the Myth of the Israeli Melting Pot 18:49 – Growing Up Between Russia and Israel: The Immigrant Child Experience 20:34 – Did She Ever Consider Leaving Israel? 21:02 – Returning to Russia After 20 Years: What She Found 22:44 – What She Loves Most About Living in Israel 23:57 – Aliyah Advice for Russian-Speaking Immigrants 25:09 – At 80, Looking Back: Who She Became Because of Aliyah 25:49 – Rapid Fire: Hummus, Yalla & Hugging Strangers RESOURCES Follow Lena on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lena-russovsky-2131b2311/  Subscribe to Yalla, Let’s Go here: https://www.aleph.vc/yalla-lets-go  Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc  Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: https://newsletter.aleph.vc/ Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@yallaletsgopodcast  Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yallaletsgopodcast/  Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@yallaletsgopodcast  Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://x.com/aleph ‍Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ ‍Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ CREDITS Hosts: Erica Marom, Abbey Onn  Executive Producer: Sarah Bard Producer: Sofi Levak, Dalit Merenfeld, Myron Shneider Video and Editing: Nadav Elovic, Yotam Kushnir Music and Creative Direction: Uri Ar  Content and Editorial: Jackie Goldberg Design: Nimrod Sapir