title: Dehomed: the impacts of house demolitions on the well-being of women from the unrecognized Bedouin-Arab villages in the Negev/Israel.
abstract: Thirty-five Bedouin-Arab villages in South Israel are regarded illegal settlements by the state. Consequently, the residents׳ homes are subject to demolition. Based on 12 semi-structured multiple-participant interviews, this paper examines the house demolitions׳ impacts on women, in the context of gendered constructions of social roles and space. It highlights that the marginalized position of Arab-Bedouin women - as women in a patriarchal community, as members of a minority within Israeli society, and as residents of an "invisible" settlement - contributes to the devastating effects of the house demolitions. In particular, the study׳s results show that the house demolitions inflict severe personal and collective trauma, amplified by women׳s primary role as mothers. Paradoxically, the very same role also becomes a source of resilience and political resistance, as women act to defend a sense of home and restore family life in the face of state violence.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health System Management, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, POB 653, 84105 Beer Sheva, Israel. Electronic address: norag@post.bgu.ac.il.
authors.forename: Nora
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gottlieb
authors.affiliation: Department of Health System Management, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, POB 653, 84105 Beer Sheva, Israel.
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Feder-Bubis
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological / Q000502:physiology; D000328:Adult; D018912:Arabs; D003889:Desert Climate; D005260:Female; D006798:Housing / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D045809:Human Rights Abuses; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D008913:Minority Groups; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D062487:Social Marginalization; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology
keywords: Conflict; Gender; Home; Israel; Qualitative research