The Intifada also had a significant impact on both the Palestinian and Israeli societies. In Palestine, the notable role of women in the Intifada movement caused feminism to become more popular. It also taught Palestine, according to Dajani, that they could use non-violent movements to cause Israel to backfire on itself. Non-violent movements could be just as, if not more powerful than violent ones. However, the Intifada was ultimately not very successful, and this caused the population to become demoralized as the Intifada wore on. In Israel, the Intifada caused Israel to look like they were in the wrong because they used force against a non-violent movement. This caused many Israeli's to question their government's response. This caused Israel to overall be a less unified nation. The rest of the world began to question Israel as well, which is still notably present today.
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Non-Violent Social Movements: The Intifada
While the first Palestinian Intifada ultimately didn't resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict, it wasn't necessarily a failure. The movement did achieve a lot. For one thing, as Dajani states, it brought the conflict between Israel and Palestine to the national stage. This meant that Israel would face, and is still currently facing, pressure from the rest of the world to resolve the issues between the two region. Every move Israel makes is now under strict watch from the rest of the world. This has resulted in there being several attempts at peace talks and accords during the 1990's. While these weren't necessarily successful, it does mark progress in the region. Regardless of the success of the movement, it has ensured that Palestine will continue to try to advocate their cause for years to come.
The Intifada also had a significant impact on both the Palestinian and Israeli societies. In Palestine, the notable role of women in the Intifada movement caused feminism to become more popular. It also taught Palestine, according to Dajani, that they could use non-violent movements to cause Israel to backfire on itself. Non-violent movements could be just as, if not more powerful than violent ones. However, the Intifada was ultimately not very successful, and this caused the population to become demoralized as the Intifada wore on. In Israel, the Intifada caused Israel to look like they were in the wrong because they used force against a non-violent movement. This caused many Israeli's to question their government's response. This caused Israel to overall be a less unified nation. The rest of the world began to question Israel as well, which is still notably present today.
The Intifada also had a significant impact on both the Palestinian and Israeli societies. In Palestine, the notable role of women in the Intifada movement caused feminism to become more popular. It also taught Palestine, according to Dajani, that they could use non-violent movements to cause Israel to backfire on itself. Non-violent movements could be just as, if not more powerful than violent ones. However, the Intifada was ultimately not very successful, and this caused the population to become demoralized as the Intifada wore on. In Israel, the Intifada caused Israel to look like they were in the wrong because they used force against a non-violent movement. This caused many Israeli's to question their government's response. This caused Israel to overall be a less unified nation. The rest of the world began to question Israel as well, which is still notably present today.
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I like your mention of how the Intifada was influential in that it made Palestinians see how using non-violent movements could not only help their society progress towards less violence, but could also force their opponents to reconsider how they come to terms with conflict. As you said, violently going against a non-violent group "back-fired" on Israel. I agree that there is heavy attention on both nations today and that the Intifada definitely had an influence on this interest. I also appreciate the mention of the female roles in the movement and how involvement within the Intifada led women to be seen as something worthy in Palestinian society (though there are still a lot of problems today).
ReplyDeleteI agree with your analysis about the strategy employed by Palestinians, especially about how violent reaction by Israel was counterproductive and discredited Israeli legitimacy in the use of force. I did not know that women were prominent actors in the intifada, but if that is true, then it makes sense that feminism grew as a social movement in post-intifada Palestine.
ReplyDeleteDo you think the Israeli government derives legitimacy from its relationship with other world leaders? For example, has President Obama's reticence and occasional criticism towards Israel diminished Israeli credibility and/or inhibited Israel's ability to combat Palestinian resistance?