{"id":2252,"date":"2018-10-30T08:00:25","date_gmt":"2018-10-30T13:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/?p=2252"},"modified":"2018-10-29T19:22:36","modified_gmt":"2018-10-30T00:22:36","slug":"competitive-victimhood-in-the-palestinian-israeli-conflict","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/2018\/10\/30\/competitive-victimhood-in-the-palestinian-israeli-conflict\/","title":{"rendered":"Competitive Victimhood in the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo of a graffitied Star of David in the Palestinian city of Hebron. Photo by JD Lasica, Flickr CC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The\u00a0<\/span>Palestinian-Israeli conflict<\/span><\/a> is a recurrent and divisive topic in international headlines. In the last year, the Trump administration has positioned itself as a firm supporter of Israel by recognizing Jerusalem as its capital and cutting aid to Palestinian territories. These moves have drawn <\/span>praise<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>criticism<\/span><\/a> in the United States and abroad, with commentators speculating what this might mean for an eventual peace treaty. Sociology can help explain why this conflict has persisted for so long and how a breakthrough might finally be achieved.<\/span><\/p>\n

When violence is directed toward a group rather than an individual, suffering gains a social dimension. An identity of victimhood is constructed. Not all tragic pasts lead to this label; rather, groups that experienced violence and groups in power negotiate the use of the term, \u201cvictim.\u201d This identity is particularly strong among Palestinians and Israelis, with both groups highly conscious of the historical and contemporary harm they have suffered from the other. Collective victimhood functions to maintain a group\u2019s moral self-image and to bolster in-group solidarity. It can also justify violence against the out-group motivated by \u201cself-defense.\u201d<\/h5>\n