Policing Citizens
Minority Policy in Israel

Examines Israel and its policing of minorities through the perceptions and experiences of four distinct minority groups.

Guy Ben-Porat (Author), Fany Yuval (Author)

9781108404747, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 24 September 2020

252 pages
23 x 15.3 x 2 cm, 0.45 kg

What does police violence against minorities, or violent clashes between minorities and the police tell us about citizenship and its internal hierarchies? Indicative of deep-seated tensions and negative perceptions; incidents such as these suggest how minorities are vulnerable, suffer from or are subject to police abuse and neglect in Israel. Marked by skin colour, negatively stigmatized or rendered security threats, their encounters with police provide a daily reminder of their defunct citizenship. Taking as case studies the experiences and perceptions of four minority groups within Israel including Palestinian/Arab citizens, ultra-Orthodox Jews and Ethiopian and Russian immigrants, Ben-Porat and Yuval are able to explore different paths of citizenship and the stratification of the citizenship regime through relations with and perceptions of the police in Israel. Touching on issues such as racial profiling, police brutality and neighbourhood neglect, their study questions the notions of citizenship and belonging, shedding light on minority relationships with the state and its institutions.

Introduction. Policing citizens
1. Theoretical Framework
2. Police and policing in Israel
3. Arab citizens: national minority and police
4. The skin color effect: police and the Jews of Ethiopian descent
5. The religious factor: ultra-Orthodox Jews (Haredim)
6. Integration and citizenship: Russian immigrants
Conclusions.

Subject Areas: Crime & criminology [JKV], Middle Eastern history [HBJF1]