You may have heard about the Odessa cafe, but did you know that Odessa is home to the largest concentration of Jewish immigrants in the country? The city was founded in 1794 by Empress Catherine the Great, who offered land, religious freedom, and tax exemptions to immigrants to settle here. However, this cafe isn't the only place to meet with the Jewish community in Odessa.
Odessa City has a large proportion of Russian speakers. Russian-speaking citizens made up nearly 40% of the population, and the population of native-born citizens was over half that. However, the percentage of foreign-born residents is significantly higher than the percentage of White people in Odessa. Of those living below the poverty line, the largest percentage was Hispanic, followed by White people.
The city's median income was $24,000 for a family of four, while the average per-capita income was $16,096. The city's median age was 52 years old, with males outnumbering females 93.2 to one. Odessa is home to several private schools, including the Odessa Christian School, Permian Basin Christian School, and St. Mary's Central Catholic School. There are also three charter schools in the city.
In Odessa, the Jewish community was the target of a pogrom directed against Odessa Jewry. Historically, ethnicity acted as a dividing force in labor movements. In Odessa, however, the population was ethnically diverse and provided a rich case study of religious animosity and worker solidarity in late Imperial Russia. It also highlights the character of worker unrest and the dynamics of revolutionary politics.