School of Social and Political Science

Description

The Invisible Palestinians is the first major study of contemporary Palestinian life in Tel Aviv. It uncovers a largely hidden and unrecognized urban reality: the many Palestinians and Palestinian citizens of Israel who work, study, or live as an unrecognized urban minority in this Jewish Israeli city. Based on more than two years of research, the author, Andreas Hackl, builds on the Palestinians’ experience to critique the city’s self-proclaimed liberalism and openness to diversity. Although often seen as Israel’s most liberal metropolis, Tel Aviv is also a city that pressures Palestinians to be politically invisible. It turns them into isolated individuals who may use the city but cannot belong to it. The Invisible Palestinians offers insights, experiences, and stories from a highly diverse population of Palestinian citizens of Israel, while also discussing experiences of Palestinian workers who move into the city from the West Bank. A new kind of 'Palestinian Tel Aviv' emerges as the book portrays manual workers and middle-class professionals, residents and commuters, students, artists, and activists, as well as members of an LGBTQ community who must carefully navigate between their community and a city that refuses to recognize them.

The book will be presented by the author, Dr Andreas Hackl, and with a guest speaker.

Copies of the book will be on sale at the reception by Lighthouse Bookshop. Copies can also be ordered online through Combined Academic Publishers.

About the author:

Dr Andreas Hackl is a social anthropologist at the School of Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh.