Struggling for a just peace : Israeli and Palestinian activism in the second Intifada

Almost invisibly, numerous activists are presently engaged in ongoing, nonviolent efforts to build peace and bring about an end to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Beginning in 2004, after the mainstream peace movement collapsed, Maia Hallward spent most of a year observing the work of seven such groups on both sides of the conflict. She returned in 2008 to examine the progress they had made in working for a just and lasting peace. Although small, these grassroots organizations provide valuable lessons regarding how peacebuilding takes place in times of ongoing animosity and violence. By raising awareness of these groups' existence, Hallward provides a much richer investigation of available options for peacemaking in Israel, which is otherwise dominated by violence and armed strategies. Challenging the official diplomatic presumption that peace is about working out lines on a map, she relocates the question into social, cultural, political, and geographic contexts that affect people's daily lives. In the end, Struggling for a Just Peace offers a critical look at the realities on the ground, focusing on what has been successful for groups engaged in working for peace in times of conflict and how they have adapted to changing circumstances. Beginning in 2004, after the mainstream peace movement collapsed due in part to the outbreak of the second intifada, the author of this book, Maia Hallward, spent most of a year observing the work of seven such groups on both sides of the conflict. She returned in 2008 to examine the progress they had made in working for a just and lasting peace. Although small, these grassroots organizations provide valuable lessons regarding how peacebuilding takes place in times of ongoing animosity and violence. Examining both the changing context for peace activism and the processes through which seven Israeli and Palestinian groups operated, this book explores the social, cultural, political, and geographic boundaries that affect people's daily lives and the possibility of building a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians. The book goes beyond outlining potential peace settlements to investigate not only varying conceptions of peace held by players in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but also group processes that create the potential for a structural peace. Differentiating between “peace words” and “peace works,” the book analyzes observed group activities and patterns of behavior in addition to dozens of extended interviews. This text offers a critical look at the realities on the ground, one that focuses on what has been successful for groups engaged in working for peace in times of conflict, and how they have adapted to changing circumstances Table of Contents 8 List of Maps and Tables 9 Preface 10 Acknowledgments 14 Introduction Identity and Conflict 16 1. Examining the Boundaries of “Peace” 30 2. Historical Overview of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict 42 3. Interrogating “Peace” and “Nonviolence”in the Israeli-Palestinian Context 63 4. Peacebuilding as Process: Groups Studied and Their Approaches to Change 84 5. Identity in Action: Peacebuilding as Category Formation 122 6. “We’ve Lost This Round”: Fragmentation and the “Piece” Process in 2008 165 7. Mechanisms of Reconfiguration: Challenging Policies of Separation 193 8. Operating with Distinction: Mobilizing Boundaries of Difference 220 9. Conclusion 239 Notes 254 References Cited 274 Index 294 Introduction: Identity and conflict 1. Examining the boundaries of peace 2. Historical overview of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict 3. Interrogating peace and nonviolence in the Israeli-Palestinian context 4. Peacebuilding as process: groups studied and their approaches to change 5. Identity in action: peacebuilding as category formation 6. We've lost this round?: fragmentation and the peace process in 2008 7. Mechanisms of reconfiguration: challenging policies of separation 8. Operating with distinction: mobilizing boundaries of difference 9. Conclusion.