Construction and reconstruction of racialised boundaries: Discourse, institutions and methods

Considerable research has been published on the divisions between the various groups of Israeli citizens. Researchers have mostly studied the socio-economic and political 'gaps' as well as the cultural differences that exist between the various groups. However, very little (if any) research has examined the constructed boundaries themselves, and the conceptual frameworks on the basis of which they were instituted. This article aims to look at one of these boundaries, the one that has been constructed between Jews and Palestinians. In addition to the examination of its formative stages and the changes in its articulation as a result of historical and demographic factors, this article analyses its implications in various spheres of life. Furthermore, it dwells on the social reality that the constructed boundaries were meant to obscure.