Half-Statelessness and Hannah Arendt’s Citizenship Model: The Case of Palestinian Citizens of Israel

This article explores Hannah Arendt’s conceptualization of half-statelessness, theorized as the partial invasion of citizenship by characteristics of statelessness. It is a process of dehumanization, since according to Arendt, human beings can realize their humanness only within the confines of genuine citizenship. Explicating Arendt’s conceptualization of half-statelessness helps us better understand her dynamic citizenship theory and better explain contemporary developments, characterizing ethnic national states in which populist trends lead to gradual substantial revocation of national minorities’ citizenship status. We illustrate the analytical advantages of Arendt’s conceptualization and demonstrate the meaning of dehumanization by examining the reaction of Palestinian citizens of Israel to recent radicalization of state policies towards them.