In the shadow of the state: Lived pluralism in Ramla

Area of Science:

• Political Science
• Sociology
• Middle Eastern Studies

Background:

• Liberal tolerance in the Israeli state is critiqued for its insufficient treatment of Palestinians.
• Scholarly work suggests liberal tolerance relies on denying and privatizing difference.
• This denial is evident in coexistence initiatives between Israelis and Palestinians.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze how the Israeli state's rejection of difference creates a violent state of exception for Palestinians.
• To investigate alternative Jewish coexistence practices in Ramla, Israel.
• To re-examine non-liberal Jewish approaches to managing difference.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative analysis of historical and contemporary coexistence practices in Ramla, Israel.
• Exploration of marginalized Jewish traditions concerning difference.
• Examination of the political dynamics between Israeli right and left coalitions.

Main Results:

• Liberal coexistence initiatives often privatize, aestheticize, or trivialize difference.
• A "liberal/illiberal horseshoe alliance" between the Israeli right and left sustains the rejection of difference.
• Alternative Jewish practices in Ramla understand difference as public, not private.

Conclusions:

• The Israeli state's approach to difference generates a violent state of exception for Palestinians.
• Non-liberal Jewish traditions offer models for public engagement with difference.
• A "minor" form of coexistence in Ramla challenges the dichotomy of Jewish supremacy and liberal multiculturalism.