Birthing the Nation: Strategies of Palestinian Women in Israel

by Rhoda Kanaaneh, Hanan Ashrawi (Foreword)

In this rich, evocative study, Rhoda Ann Kanaaneh examines the changing notions of sexuality, family, and reproduction among Palestinians living in Israel. Distinguishing itself amid the media maelstrom that has homogenized Palestinians as "terrorists," this important new work offers a complex, nuanced, and humanized depiction of a group rendered invisible despite its substantial size, now accounting for nearly twenty percent of Israel's population. Groundbreaking and thought-provoking, Birthing the Nation contextualizes the politics of reproduction within contemporary issues affecting Palestinians, and places these issues against the backdrop of a dominant Israeli society.

Genres: Nonfiction, Gender, Middle East, Ethnography, Anthropology

300 pages, Paperback

First published June 28, 2002

Reviews

[seo · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a fascinating ethnography examining the intersection of medicalization and biopower with reproduction. kanaaneh argues that reproduction is shaped by "state policy, economic development, medicalization and local dynamics" and she situates that within the galilee. she discusses the national and religious identity of israel and how that influences the reproductive policies and agendas of the israeli state (ex: they want more israeli jewish babies but less palestininan babies). but on top of the zionist state, she discusses the additional layer of capitalism and consumerism influencing family planning.

personally, i thought it was deeply interesting to read through the interviews and see the kinds of attitudes palestinian mothers held about reproduction and children. i also appreciated the historical contextualization of these beliefs and how they varied between the christian, muslim, and jewish people in the galilee since at the time of reading this, i was still very new to understanding the occupation of palestine and zionism. i wish the book was a little longer and delved more into how palestinian mothers were divided vs united over things like religion, class, etc. she alludes to them but never fully fleshes them out. perhaps she assumes that readers will have already have a full understanding of the family dynamic in palestine? not sure, but for me, a reader who is extremely new to middle eastern studies, i wouldn't have that kind of understanding that another reader might have. still, an excellent ethnographic read.

[Dan Gorman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting look at Israeli public health policies and how Palestinians living in Israel view reproduction. Palestinians are divided whether to have more children and thus out-populate the Israelis, or to use birth control and raise fewer yet "better" children. Rhoda Kanaaneh uses anthropological interviews in Galilee to show the contradictions and complexities of Palestinian reproductive beliefs, such as community divisions over birth control, the level of religious observance, how much modern technology to use, etc. Kanaaneh also shows that sons remain the preferred agents of nationhood; Palestinian mothers are encouraged to raise up sons to fight against Israel. Although the book covers a specialized topic, it's an easy read with solid insights into the state of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, told from an unusual perspective. Kanaaneh also includes some decent history to explain why the Israeli government encourages birth control for the Palestinians: The Israeli state doesn't want the Palestinians to have more babies than the Israelis.