The Misconception of Palestinian Values and Culture:
The Palestinian Paradox
2012
PUBP 503
Introduction
The views of the American society are often influenced by media and political discourse that occur at the highest levels of U.S. Foreign policy. Leadership plays an important role and the strength of U.S.-Israeli relations is a driver of the misconception of Palestinian values and culture. I had the privilege of learning what it is like to be a Palestinian-American from a colleague that spent the majority of his life on the Gaza strip.
Abu Yousef, or ‘father of Yousef,’ is a respected colleague and Ph. D. Statistician who studied at American University. He was one of nine children, born to a poor family in Gaza. His father worked construction in Israel, but was banned in 1987 after the first Palestinian uprising, or Intifada. The uprising led to economic sanctions that had a lasting effect on the ability of the landlocked country to provide basic necessities that Americans take for granted-water, electricity and food.
In America, jihad is frequently used to refer to a holy war. However, the meaning of jihad is much broader, including a crusade, principal belief, spiritual devotion, or simply achieving a personal goal (Yousef 2012). Abu Yousef’s jihad was education and learning to further the opportunities for his family. Despite graduating at the top of his class at Alazhar University in Gaza, it was impossible to find jobs because of economic sanctions imposed by Israel. To find work, a professor at the university persuaded him to apply to colleges in the U.S., particularly American University. Armed with a scholarship, skills in mathematics, statistics, and very little English training, Abu Yousef crossed the Atlantic in 1998.
Background
To understand the culture of Gaza, it is important to know the political climate. The occupied territory of Palestine includes the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. In 1993, President Clinton gathered PLO Head Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin to sign the Oslo Accords (Jones n.d.). According to the treaty, Israel agreed to give Arafat control of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. In return, Arafat and other factions would stop the resistance to Israeli occupation (Shah 2009). PM Rabin was assassinated by Israeli radicals shortly after the agreement and replaced by Binyamin Netanyahu in 1995. Netanyahu tightened sanctions on Palestinian territories and refused to abide by the former PM’s agreement. Clinton tried and failed once again to build peace at Camp David in 2000. To this day, Israel continues to build settlements on land that was granted to Arafat by the Oslo Accords (Counsel on Foreign Relations n.d.).
Gaza and the West Bank held free elections in 2006, pitting the two major parties of Hamas and Fatah against each other. Fatah is the party of Arafat, known for corruption and primarily concerned with receiving money and international aid. Hamas, on the other hand, focuses on helping poorer areas get support and receives little funding (from outside sources) because of ties with military factions. Israeli support for Fatah, corruption and lost hope for peace led to their defeat in the 2006 elections. Israel countered the outcome with increased economic sanctions, allowing few goods to enter and leave the occupied territory, with few exceptions such as some medical supplies and chocolate. At the expense of innocent men, women and children, the goal of these restrictions is to change the political leadership of Palestine to one that is more easily influenced by international aid.
Even though Fatah was defeated in the 2006 elections, they continue to control resources and services in the West Bank and Gaza, including teachers and police officers. Although Hamas is running the government, Fatah pays government workers to not go to work (Yousef 2012). The failure in the transition of power to Hamas benefits politically connected constituents and creates additional problems in terms of economic sanctions, government services, and foreign aid, among others.
In 2008, the Israel-Gaza conflict became a full scale war (Derfner 2008). Israeli strikes killed approximately 1,400 women and children as Egypt did not allow civilians to cross the border to seek refuge from the conflict (as required under U.N law). Hosni Mubarak , President of Egypt (at the time), relied on Israeli support to remain in power and pass control to his son. The Palestinians believe the timing of the war may have been politically motivated, coinciding with Israeli elections and the last few months before President Obama took office . Abu Yousef stated that Egypt’s support for Israel is a major motive for the uprising during the Arab Spring. Egypt is closely connected to Gaza, both in geo-political terms as well as culture (Yousef 2012).
Collectivist Culture
Family life in Gaza is a vital aspect of the culture. Family includes not only the immediate family members, but the entire community as well. Abu Yousef said it is not uncommon to know every person in the neighborhood and their family members (in a very large and dense neighborhood). It is commonplace to go to a friend’s home unannounced and have tea or coffee with them for a few hours. The opposite culture exists at Abu Yousef’s home in Sterling, Virginia. The interaction among members in the community is very limited in relative terms. It is considered rude to show up unannounced in the states. Knowing your neighbors and their family is considered a luxury in the suburbs of Washington.
In Gaza, the lack of privacy can be viewed as a positive in terms of building culture and interaction among members of the community. However, the abundance of privacy in the U.S. can also be viewed as one of the biggest advantages of living in the states. Privacy is virtually non-existent in the Gaza strip. Abu Yousef stated that it is difficult to know the importance of private life, never having experienced the personal space and freedom in the Middle East. The close knit community makes private life difficult - everyone knows the ups and downs of daily life. The social network among community members leads to gossip traveling quickly throughout the community.
The pros and cons of privacy in the U.S. versus Gaza create a paradox: the lack of privacy is beneficial to
building a community and culture; whereas the lack of privacy becomes a negative in terms of personal space that is often taken for granted in the U.S. This paradox highlights an essential difference between the collectivist culture in Gaza and the individualistic culture that exists in the U.S (Hofstede and Hofstede 2005).
Raising Children
Another difference between life in Gaza and the U.S. is seen as Abu Yousef raises his four children. Abu Yousef’s childhood in the Gaza strip (at the time) was care free. He was able to travel the large city at a very early age- about 8 or 9 years old - having a comfort zone that extended all the way to the beach. He could go as he pleased and never had to worry about being harmed or feeling insecure.
Despite the personal and economic freedoms in the U.S., safety and security is always the primary concern for parents raising children. He mentioned that parents in the U.S. think the worst if their child is gone only for a very short period of time, perhaps influenced by the role of the U.S. media.
Role of Media
Abu Yousef taught me that the least favorite country of Palestinians is Israel because of their occupation of Gaza, and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The ironic part is that many Palestinians view the U.S. as their favorite country, despite the deep U.S.-Israeli political connection and overwhelming favoritism in the media toward Israel. He describes the Palestinian people as very smart, educated, having a high rate of Ph.Ds, and keenly aware of the separation that exists between the American people and the politicians (Yousef 2012).
According to “Islam through Western Eyes,” Muslim values and culture represents “the Orient” or unfamiliar. The U.S. culture is known as “our world” or “the Occident” (Said 1980). As a member of the American community, Abu Yousef feels Muslims are unfairly portrayed in the media. He wants the U.S. to know ‘the true Islam,’ as opposed to the extremist version that grabs headlines and media attention, as seen after the attacks on September 11th. The unfortunate effect is that many Americans do not interact with Muslims on a regular basis, nor do they recognize the diversity of views that exist. Their only knowledge of Muslims is the fact that the September 11th hijackers were Muslim, resulting in broad-based discrimination.
Poverty
Poverty in Gaza is ingrained in the culture. In “Globalization of Postmodern Values,” Inglehart hypothesized the importance of economic development and its effect on subjective well-being (Inglehart Winter 2000). Abu Yousef recently returned to Gaza for the first time when Egypt opened the border. He said the despair among the youth is at a level that has not been seen since the Arab-Israeli War of 1948. The youth have no hope or opportunity to succeed in a modern economy. The absence of economic achievement in Gaza has created apathy and hopelessness among the people (Yousef 2012). Years of blockades and sanctions have taken a heavy toll.
In “Bad Samaritans: Rich Nations, Poor Policies, and the Threat to the Developing World,” Chang suggests a feedback loop exists between economic development and culture (Chang 2007). In Gaza, the lack of economic opportunity leads to extremism and hunger strikes as disaffected youth seek an outlet for their energy (Abdalla 2012). However, based on my interview, Chang’s generalization of uneducated Muslims does not hold when describing the people of Gaza.
Religion and Gender
With regards to religion, one of Abu Yousef’s concerns is the inability of his children to learn the true Islamic religion while growing up in the U.S. Although they practice and speak fluent Arabic, the religious culture that exists in Gaza is very different than the one in the U.S. In Gaza, religion is represented in the community, the values, culture and experiences. For example, a tradition at weddings is for the groom’s entire family to travel to the neighborhood of the bride in large buses to celebrate. During the festivities, children sometimes get separated or lost from their parents. Whoever finds the lost child (often someone who knows the bridal party) sees that the child finds transportation back to the neighborhood of his family, without hesitation. He said this is one example of a cultural experience that his children cannot have in the U.S.
Compared to other Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia, Palestinians enjoy more religious freedoms and rights among women. Abu Yousef described an environment that was tolerant and accepting of other religious views, which is unusual for a poor Muslim country.
Abu Yousef grew up with seven sisters; each attended the University and treated with the utmost respect by the family. Education is important for females because jobs are scarce, increasing the likelihood of finding a job. Education also provides better opportunities for marriage because they are able to support a family if the husband is not able to find work. Expectations are different for sons and daughters. At an early age, boys and girls are allowed freedom in terms of going to the beach and traveling without company. As his sisters grew older, they were expected to ask permission from their husband to travel alone because of societal and cultural norms.
During Abu Yousef’s recent trip to Gaza, the traditional roles of males and females became more apparent after his cultural experiences in the U.S. In Gaza, women are expected to care for the children and prepare food for the family with little assistance from the husband. In older generations, the trends are more exaggerated in terms of female duties and male duties.
Future of Palestine
Abu Yousef will ask me, “What do I do to become more American?” My response is generally geared toward middle America- Budweiser and Ford trucks, but this does not capture the true essence of being an American. Abu Yousef is more American than me in many ways – described by his entrepreneurial spirit, work ethic, risk taking, and enjoyment of American television shows such as “Seinfeld.”
Unfortunately, the political landscape has changed dramatically since Abu Yousef left Gaza for the United States. The future of Palestine is uncertain at best with limited opportunities. Inglehart suggested that economic opportunity may have a compounding effect on emotional well-being. Chang claimed, “No country is condemned to underdevelopment because of culture.” Moreover, the U.S.-Israeli influence in the U.N., Western Culture and media portrayal creates significant barriers to changing a culture of poverty and apathy.
Figure 1 (Menon 2012)
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