Maternal "Anti-Politics" in the Formation of Hebron's Jewish Enclave
Keywords: 
settlements
Abstract: 

This article examines the use of gender and the mother-child bond as a tactic in settlement expansion. In particular, it focuses on the activism of Kiryat Arba women during the 1970s aimed at establishing a permanent stronghold in municipal Hebron, and on the persuasiveness of maternalism in subsequent representations of more contemporary events. The main incidents of expansion into Hebron include: incursions into the Tomb of the Patriarchs, the establishment of a Jewish cemetery, and the takeover of a building in the city’s center. The article also investigates the rhetorical component of maternal activism. In these diverse contexts, the author argues that the effectiveness of maternalism in settlement expansion depends on a strategic use of the private sphere, which neutralizes the political content of women’s actions.

TAMARA NEUMAN holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Chicago. She is currently finishing an ethnography of Israeli settlement, Reinstating the Religious Nation, based on fieldworkconducted in Hebron and Jerusalem from 1994 to 1996 and in 2001 with the support of Fullbright Hays, the CASPIC/John T. and Catherine D. MacArthur Foundation, and the Henry FrankGuggenheim Foundation. She wishes to thankMala De Alwis, Leora Auslander, Carol Breckenridge, Matti Bunzl, Tania Forte, Jim Fernandez, Paul Friedrich, Nadia Abu El-Haj, Matthew J. Hill, Engseng Ho, Lena Jayyusi, May Jayyusi, Rashid Khalidi, Paul Liffman, Henry Munson, and several anonymous reviewers for their insights and comments at various stages of writing this article.

Tamara Neuman holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Chicago. She is currently finishing an ethnography of Israeli settlement, Reinstating the Religious Nation, based on fieldwork conducted in Hebron and Jerusalem from 1994 to 1996 and in 2001 with the support of Fullbright Hays, the CASPIC/John T. and Catherine D. MacArthur Foundation, and the Henry Frank Guggenheim Foundation. She wishes to thank Mala De Alwis, Leora Auslander, Carol Breckenridge, Matti Bunzl, Tania Forte, Jim Fernandez, Paul Friedrich, Nadia Abu El-Haj, Matthew J. Hill, Engseng Ho, Lena Jayyusi, May Jayyusi, Rashid Khalidi, Paul Liffman, Henry Munson, and several anonymous reviewers for their insights and comments at various stages of writing this article.