COLONIAL NARRATIVES
Between Myths and Realities (Part 2)
Teach-In Session 12 - December 14, 2023
TEACHING RESOURCES
This particular teach-in is useful for those interested in understanding recurring colonial myths contextualised by holding them against actual statements made by original founders, the historical record, and enduring policies/practices of the state of Israel. From founding myths to the demographic “problem,” deconstructing these narratives is essential for understanding both the current nature of the Palestinian occupation and struggle for freedom as well as the false histories that the Zionist Israeli state uses to justify its colonial settler violence.
Rashid Khalidi is Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University. He received his BA from Yale in 1970, and his D.Phil. from Oxford in 1974. He is editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies, and was President of the Middle East Studies Association, and an advisor to the Palestinian delegation to the Madrid and Washington Arab-Israeli peace negotiations from October 1991 until June 1993. He is author of: The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917- 2017 (2020); Brokers of Deceit: How the U.S. has Undermined Peace in the Middle East (2013); Sowing Crisis: American Dominance and the Cold War in the Middle East (2009);The Iron Cage: The Story of the Palestinian Struggle for Statehood (2006); Resurrecting Empire: Western Footprints and America's Perilous Path in the Middle East (2004); Palestinian Identity: The Construction of Modern National Consciousness (1996); Under Siege: PLO Decision-Making During the 1982 War (1986); British Policy Towards Syria and Palestine, 1906-1914 (1980); and co-editor of Palestine and the Gulf (1982) and The Origins of Arab Nationalism (1991), and The Other Jerusalem: Rethinking the History of the Sacred City (2020).
Bassam Haddad (moderator) is Founding Director of the Middle East and Islamic Studies Program and Associate Professor at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University. He is the author of Business Networks in Syria: The Political Economy of Authoritarian Resilience (Stanford University Press, 2011) and co-editor of A Critical Political Economy of the Middle East (Stanford University Press, 2021). Bassam is Co-Founder/Editor of Jadaliyya Ezine and Executive Director of the Arab Studies Institute. He serves as Founding Editor of the Arab Studies Journal and the Knowledge Production Project. He is co-producer/director of the award-winning documentary film, About Baghdad, and director of the acclaimed series Arabs and Terrorism. Bassam serves on the Board of the Arab Council for the Social Sciences and is Executive Producer of Status Audio Magazine and Director of the Middle East Studies Pedagogy Initiative (MESPI). He received MESA's Jere L. Bacharach Service Award in 2017 for his service to the profession. Currently, Bassam is working on his second Syria book titled Understanding the Syrian Calamity: Regime, Opposition, Outsiders (forthcoming, Stanford University Press).
Bassam Haddad (moderator) is Founding Director of the Middle East and Islamic Studies Program and Associate Professor at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University. He is the author of Business Networks in Syria: The Political Economy of Authoritarian Resilience (Stanford University Press, 2011) and co-editor of A Critical Political Economy of the Middle East (Stanford University Press, 2021). Bassam is Co-Founder/Editor of Jadaliyya Ezine and Executive Director of the Arab Studies Institute. He serves as Founding Editor of the Arab Studies Journal and the Knowledge Production Project. He is co-producer/director of the award-winning documentary film, About Baghdad, and director of the acclaimed series Arabs and Terrorism. Bassam serves on the Board of the Arab Council for the Social Sciences and is Executive Producer of Status Audio Magazine and Director of the Middle East Studies Pedagogy Initiative (MESPI). He received MESA's Jere L. Bacharach Service Award in 2017 for his service to the profession. Currently, Bassam is working on his second Syria book titled Understanding the Syrian Calamity: Regime, Opposition, Outsiders (forthcoming, Stanford University Press).
FULL TEACH-IN
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CONTENTS
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TEACHING GUIDE
In this teach-in, Rashid Khalidi and Bassam Haddad examine recurring colonial myths in some detail, while simultaneously juxtaposing them against actual statements made by original founders, the historical record, and enduring policies/practices of the state of Israel. The primary myths examined include:
(1) "Narratives on Zionist Displacement/Replacement of Palestinians" Many narratives surround the Zionist displacement of Palestinians during the onset of Israel’s occupation with one of the most common being that the Palestinians “left on their own” overseeing the occurrence of the Nakba. A key aspect of dismantling this narrative lies in deconstructing the Zionist movement’s intention of shifting the demographics within Palestine to accommodate the creation of a Jewish state.
(2) "Narratives on Immigration and Population/Demographics" Prior to Israel’s occupation of Palestine, Palestine was an Arab-majority country with both Muslims and Christians as well as a small Jewish minority despite narratives that paint it as having been uninhabited. Narratives on migration to Palestine also exist where Western complicity in pushing anti-Jewish immigration policies to redirect waves of Jewish migrants fleeing Europe due to antisemitism is not held to account.
(3) "Narratives on the Founding of Israel" One of the leading narratives on the founding of Israel falls under the claim that Palestine was “a land without a people for a people without a land”. This colonial myth works to erase the historic presence of prominent Palestinian and Arab communities that would be driven out by Israel in premeditated plans following the problematic 1947 UN Partition that disproportionately advantaged Jewish communities. The role of the British mandate in enabling premeditated Israeli plans to forcefully expel Palestinians is also often overlooked thus forming such narratives.
(4) "Narratives on Arab Jews in Arab Countries" Narratives concerning the presence and experience of Arab Jews in Arab countries attempt to depict them as having been historically persecuted and marginalized. However, the historical record reveals the extent to which the Zionist movement has worked through intelligence operations to manipulate circumstances surrounding Arab Jews to encourage their alienation from the Arab world and encourage migration to Israel.
(5) "Narratives on Palestinians Refusing Generous Peace Deals" Palestinians are often accused of refusing “generous” peace deals in narratives that fail to consider how such peace deals presented disproportionate outcomes that favored Israeli communities over Palestinian ones.
(1) "Narratives on Zionist Displacement/Replacement of Palestinians" Many narratives surround the Zionist displacement of Palestinians during the onset of Israel’s occupation with one of the most common being that the Palestinians “left on their own” overseeing the occurrence of the Nakba. A key aspect of dismantling this narrative lies in deconstructing the Zionist movement’s intention of shifting the demographics within Palestine to accommodate the creation of a Jewish state.
(2) "Narratives on Immigration and Population/Demographics" Prior to Israel’s occupation of Palestine, Palestine was an Arab-majority country with both Muslims and Christians as well as a small Jewish minority despite narratives that paint it as having been uninhabited. Narratives on migration to Palestine also exist where Western complicity in pushing anti-Jewish immigration policies to redirect waves of Jewish migrants fleeing Europe due to antisemitism is not held to account.
(3) "Narratives on the Founding of Israel" One of the leading narratives on the founding of Israel falls under the claim that Palestine was “a land without a people for a people without a land”. This colonial myth works to erase the historic presence of prominent Palestinian and Arab communities that would be driven out by Israel in premeditated plans following the problematic 1947 UN Partition that disproportionately advantaged Jewish communities. The role of the British mandate in enabling premeditated Israeli plans to forcefully expel Palestinians is also often overlooked thus forming such narratives.
(4) "Narratives on Arab Jews in Arab Countries" Narratives concerning the presence and experience of Arab Jews in Arab countries attempt to depict them as having been historically persecuted and marginalized. However, the historical record reveals the extent to which the Zionist movement has worked through intelligence operations to manipulate circumstances surrounding Arab Jews to encourage their alienation from the Arab world and encourage migration to Israel.
(5) "Narratives on Palestinians Refusing Generous Peace Deals" Palestinians are often accused of refusing “generous” peace deals in narratives that fail to consider how such peace deals presented disproportionate outcomes that favored Israeli communities over Palestinian ones.
- How do colonial narratives shape and perpetuate power dynamics between the colonizer and the colonized reflected in the media today? Discuss with examples from the teach-in.
- Discuss the concept of "demographic threat" and its implications for the Palestinian population in the context of discriminatory Israeli immigration and settlement policies.
- Examine the narratives surrounding the refusal of "generous peace deals" by Palestinians. How do power dynamics and historical context shape the acceptance or rejection of such deals? Consider sayings such as "Palestinians Never Miss an Opportunity to Miss an Opportunity".
- Discuss the impact of deconstructing and challenging colonial narratives on the ongoing struggle for Palestinian freedom and self-determination. How might this process contribute to a more just and equitable resolution of the occupation?
- Analyze the role of media and popular culture in perpetuating or challenging colonial narratives surrounding the Israeli occupation and subjugation of Palestine. How can these narratives be effectively countered or reshaped?
- Consider the narratives surrounding the "generous" peace deals offered to Palestinians throughout history. What were the actual terms of these deals, and how would they impact Israelis and Palestinians differently? How were these deals presented as "generous," and what are the underlying motivations behind these narratives?
- Decolonial Mapping Project: Students research and create alternative maps of historic Palestine that challenge colonial cartography. These maps should depict Palestinian villages, towns, and communities that were erased or renamed after the Nakba due to the creation of Israeli settlements or other means of erasure.
- Oral History Archive: Students may research second-hand/recorded interviews with Palestinian elders, refugees, or community members that record first-hand accounts of displacement, resistance, and life under occupation. These oral histories can be compiled into a digital archive or exhibition to counter erasure and preserve counter-narratives to colonial narratives highlighted in the teach-in.
- Deconstructing Narratives on Demographics Case Study: Students investigate specific instances or policies of demographic engineering by Israeli forces (e.g., forced expulsion, house demolitions, revocation of residency rights, segregated roads and infrastructure). They analyze the motives, impacts, and how these practices reinforce colonial narratives of demographics and immigration in Palestine.
"The idea that the war we see in Palestine today has been going on since time immemorial and that there's always been a conflict between Arabs and Jews is fundamentally false." - Rashid Khalidi
SEGMENTS
Narratives on Immigration and Population/
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Narratives on Zionist Displacement/Replacement of PalestiniansHow do we understand the process of displacement and replacement that was carefully manufactured and pushed by the Zionist movement yet shaped to appear 'natural'?
Narratives on Arab Jews in Arab CountriesWhat is the truth behind why Arab Jews fled the Arab countries in which they had lived in prosperity for years? Listen to the role played by Israel in manufacturing the environments that would motivate this migration to Israel.
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On How Explicit Israeli Statements Evidencing Palestinian Claims are OverlookedKhalidi explains why minimal confrontation has existed with the realities of Zionism and Palestinian occupation despite explicit evidence supporting Palestinian claims in Israeli works and history.
Narratives on Palestinians Refusing Generous Peace DealsPalestinians are often criticised for refusing "generous" deals through out history, yet what were the terms of these "generous" deals? Khalidi describes how these deals disproportionately advantaged Zionists while harmed and stole from Palestinians.
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SOUNDBITES
On A Jewish State in An Arab Land |
On the Forced Displacement of Palestinians and the Nakba |
On the Premeditated Plan to Conquer Palestine |
Map: United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine
