Deserving and privileged: the social construction of the right to housing in Israel

This article compares the struggle of two groups in Israel for housing rights. Following Schneider and Ingram’s model, the article analyses the influence of the social construction of each group ‒ residents of the communal rural sector as an advantaged group, and public housing tenants as a dependent group ‒ on its housing rights. The findings fit Schneider and Ingram’s model with one surprising exception: The ‘dependent’ group achieved significant favourable legislation in 1998, whereas the ‘advantaged’ group has not yet succeeded. The article attempts to explain this divergence from the model and the effect of social construction on housing rights in a given society.