Racism and the politics of signification: Israeli public discourse on racism towards Palestinian citizens

Herzog, Hanna; Sharon, Smadar; Leykin, Inna

doi:10.1080/01419870701692583

Cited by 10 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…In Israel, using racial terminology is immediately perceived as being associated with the Holocaust and the hideous atrocities of the Nazi regime (Herzog, Sharon, & Leykin, 2008). In relation to a benchmark such as that, Israel's policies have never been racial-not within the Jewish world, nor toward Arabs.…”

Section: Fields Of Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Presenting Ethnicity: Israeli Citizenship Discourse

Herzog

2019

Contemporary Review of the Middle East

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In 1950, Israel enacted the Law of Return and 2 years afterwards passed its Citizenship Law. These measures reflected the Zionist goal of encouraging Jewish immigration to Israel/Palestine, so citizenship was mostly limited to Jews. In other words, an ascriptive/ethnic classification was at the foundation of Israeli citizenship. This article explores the construction of the citizenship laws in relation to various forms of categorization—biological descent, cultural belonging, racial classifications, and voluntary affiliation. It asks how the Israeli citizenship policy was presented and which mechanisms were employed in order to justify the incorporation of all Jews, including those from Arab countries, while attempting to exclude non-Jews. After analyzing official state policies and parliamentary debates in Israel regarding the citizenship laws, I present the mechanisms employed to present the ethnic immigration policy. Those mechanisms include emphasizing the positive and democratic sides of allowing Jewish immigration; repeatedly avoiding the usage of racial terminology; highlighting the willingness to incorporate non-Jewish residents; and employing security justifications when prohibiting non-Jewish immigration. Being the Jewish State, Israel wanted to favor Jews in its immigration and naturalization policies. However, being also committed to democratic values and principles, it desired to disassociate itself from racial attitudes.

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Section: Fields Of Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Presenting Ethnicity: Israeli Citizenship Discourse

Herzog

2019

Contemporary Review of the Middle East

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“…The hegemonic discourse in Israel does not allow overt references to skin color, since these are associated with concepts of race and racism, which are reserved for discussions of Nazi racial theory and the trauma of the Holocaust (Herzog et al, ). When skin color is referred to in public discourse, it is roundly condemned.…”

Section: Ethnic Boundaries In Ashkenazi Discoursementioning

confidence: 99%

A Different Kind of Whiteness: Marking and Unmarking of Social Boundaries in the Construction of Hegemonic Ethnicity

Sasson‐Levy

2013

Sociological Forum

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This article proposes a new theoretical approach to the analysis of hegemonic ethnicity through an examination of the construction of white ethnicity among Ashkenazim (Jews of European origin) in Israel. Contrary to the theory of symbolic ethnicity, I argue that "Ashkenaziness" in Israel is not an optional, voluntary identity; rather, it is constituted by employing narratives that continually establish cultural, color-based, and ethnic boundaries between Ashkenazim and Mizrahi Jews. In certain social and ideological circumstances, however, boundary marking is not enough to maintain a privileged status. From the narratives of Ashkenazi Jews-the Israeli version of whites-it emerges that not only do they demarcate social boundaries between themselves and other groups, thereby preserving the ethnic hierarchy, but they are constantly engaged in blurring or erasing these same boundaries, allowing Ashkenazim to remain a transparent, unmarked social category. This dual practice of marking and unmarking is a result of the tension between the Jewish-Zionist and Western-secular images of the state. While Israel's Jewish discourse supposedly negates intra-Jewish ethnic conflicts, the Western ideal identifies Ashkenazim with the state, thus solidifying their power and preserving their privileged status.

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“…First, many of the interviewees in both groups mentioned skin color as a marker of ethnicity. The hegemonic discourse in Israel discourages overt references to skin color, since this is associated with concepts of race and racism, which are reserved for discussions of Nazi racial theory and the trauma of the Holocaust (Herzog, Sharon, and Leykin ). However, parallel to the hegemonic discourse that rejects the mention of skin color, there is a covert discourse in which tall, light‐skinned Ashkenazim are seen as superior and as a physical ideal (Frankel ).…”

Section: Intergenerational Similaritiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnic Generations: Evolving Ethnic Perceptions among Dominant Groups

Sasson‐Levy

2013

The Sociological Quarterly

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This study suggests that generational affiliation is significant in explaining distinctive ethnic perceptions among dominant groups. In Israel, the Ashkenazim, Jews of European descent, constitute the political, social, and economic elite. In-depth interviews with two generations of Ashkenazim showed similarities in ethnic perceptions, but also revealed important differences among the two generations. For the older group, Ashkenaziness is both an ethnicity-free norm of Israeliness and a product of European culture performed by both the marking and unmarking of cultural boundaries. The younger group, on the other hand, self-identifies as Ashkenazi, but interprets Ashkenaziness as a thin ethnicity and primarily a position of social power. This evolution in ethnic perceptions is explained by the historical specific interface of three factors: dominant discursive orders of the era, state institutions and policies, and the encounter with the "other."

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Racism and the politics of signification: Israeli public discourse on racism towards Palestinian citizens

Cited by 10 publications

References 5 publications

Presenting Ethnicity: Israeli Citizenship Discourse

Presenting Ethnicity: Israeli Citizenship Discourse

A Different Kind of Whiteness: Marking and Unmarking of Social Boundaries in the Construction of Hegemonic Ethnicity

Ethnic Generations: Evolving Ethnic Perceptions among Dominant Groups

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