Zionism is a political movement that originated in the late 19th century in eastern and central Europe with the goal of creating and supporting a Jewish national state in Palestine, the ancient homeland of the Jews. The movement was a response to a long history of intense anti-Jewish hatred, persecution, and discrimination in countries and societies across the world where Jews lived, including in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. The movement was given a political turn by Theodor Herzl, an Austrian journalist who argued that if Jews were forced by external pressure to form a nation, they could lead a normal existence only through concentration in one territory. The movement secured support among Western European governments, particularly after Zionists agreed to create their Jewish state in historic Palestine. The movement drew on Jewish religious attachment to Jerusalem and the Land of Israel (Eretz Israel) . Today, Zionism is a big tent movement that includes those across the spectrum from progressives, moderates, and conservatives and those who are apolitical.