Relations between Development Towns and Kibbutzim
In: Israel studies review, Band 33, Heft 3, S. 121-139
ISSN: 2159-0389
Until the 1970s, the few interactions between Sderot and the
neighboring kibbutzim in the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council revolved
around the kibbutzim's economic and political dominance. As political
resistance to this control increased, kibbutz members became worried
about the consequences of segregation and economic exploitation and
wished to alter these problematic relations. Thus, the Sderot–Sha'ar HaNegev
partnership program, which aimed to create a shift in the relational
structure, was established. This article analyzes the power dynamics
between Sderot residents and the kibbutzim during the program's operation.
The partnership, although expected to reduce segregation and
change the power relations between the communities, did not bring about
a transformation from paternalism to partnership, but rather evolved
from dominance to hegemony. Although the hierarchical relations are still
in place, the interaction between spatial, class, and identity elements has
created new ways in which the relationship operates up to the present day.
