The Perils and Limits of Memory Laws: The Case of Israel’s “Nakba Law” (2011)

Yifat Gutman

doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94914-3_11

The Perils and Limits of Memory Laws: The Case of Israel’s “Nakba Law” (2011)

Yifat Gutman

Department of Sociology and Anthropology

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review

Abstract

The chapter presents the case of an Israeli law that bans commemoration of Palestinian displacement in the 1948 war during the annual Israeli Independence Day celebration. Focusing on the public debates surrounding the law from 2009 to 2017, the legislation process is analyzed within the Israeli context as one legal technique in the service of a larger political effort to silence criticism and control public debate. This case demonstrates how antidemocratic legislation radicalizes the inherent tension between nation-state memory and democratic law. In Israel, this is done by introducing an escalating degree of minority exclusion-from omission of minority memories from the national calendar, to active banning of minority commemoration. Yet the study also reveals the limitation of state power to control public debate using memory laws.

Original language	American English
Title of host publication	Memory Laws and Historical Justice
Subtitle of host publication	The Politics of Criminalizing the Past
Pages	275-289
Number of pages	15
ISBN (Electronic)	9783030949143
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94914-3_11
State	Published - 1 Jan 2022

Keywords

Israel-Palestine
Memory Laws
National Memory
Public debate
The “Nakba Law”

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

General Arts and Humanities

Access to Document

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94914-3_11

Cite this

@inbook{bd343f6159ad40ce96913654c92c9308,

title = "The Perils and Limits of Memory Laws: The Case of Israel{\textquoteright}s “Nakba Law” (2011)",

abstract = "The chapter presents the case of an Israeli law that bans commemoration of Palestinian displacement in the 1948 war during the annual Israeli Independence Day celebration. Focusing on the public debates surrounding the law from 2009 to 2017, the legislation process is analyzed within the Israeli context as one legal technique in the service of a larger political effort to silence criticism and control public debate. This case demonstrates how antidemocratic legislation radicalizes the inherent tension between nation-state memory and democratic law. In Israel, this is done by introducing an escalating degree of minority exclusion-from omission of minority memories from the national calendar, to active banning of minority commemoration. Yet the study also reveals the limitation of state power to control public debate using memory laws.",

keywords = "Israel-Palestine, Memory Laws, National Memory, Public debate, The “Nakba Law”",

author = "Yifat Gutman",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.",

year = "2022",

month = jan,

day = "1",

doi = "https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94914-3_11",

language = "American English",

isbn = "9783030949136",

pages = "275--289",

booktitle = "Memory Laws and Historical Justice",

}

TY - CHAP

T1 - The Perils and Limits of Memory Laws

T2 - The Case of Israel’s “Nakba Law” (2011)

AU - Gutman, Yifat

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

PY - 2022/1/1

Y1 - 2022/1/1

N2 - The chapter presents the case of an Israeli law that bans commemoration of Palestinian displacement in the 1948 war during the annual Israeli Independence Day celebration. Focusing on the public debates surrounding the law from 2009 to 2017, the legislation process is analyzed within the Israeli context as one legal technique in the service of a larger political effort to silence criticism and control public debate. This case demonstrates how antidemocratic legislation radicalizes the inherent tension between nation-state memory and democratic law. In Israel, this is done by introducing an escalating degree of minority exclusion-from omission of minority memories from the national calendar, to active banning of minority commemoration. Yet the study also reveals the limitation of state power to control public debate using memory laws.

AB - The chapter presents the case of an Israeli law that bans commemoration of Palestinian displacement in the 1948 war during the annual Israeli Independence Day celebration. Focusing on the public debates surrounding the law from 2009 to 2017, the legislation process is analyzed within the Israeli context as one legal technique in the service of a larger political effort to silence criticism and control public debate. This case demonstrates how antidemocratic legislation radicalizes the inherent tension between nation-state memory and democratic law. In Israel, this is done by introducing an escalating degree of minority exclusion-from omission of minority memories from the national calendar, to active banning of minority commemoration. Yet the study also reveals the limitation of state power to control public debate using memory laws.

KW - Israel-Palestine

KW - Memory Laws

KW - National Memory

KW - Public debate

KW - The “Nakba Law”

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85163489691&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94914-3_11

DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94914-3_11

M3 - Chapter

SN - 9783030949136

SP - 275

EP - 289

BT - Memory Laws and Historical Justice

ER -

The Perils and Limits of Memory Laws: The Case of Israel’s “Nakba Law” (2011)

Abstract

Keywords

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this