The experiences of Palestinian Arabs with disabilities in Israel
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
ISSN: 2040-7149
Article publication date: 21 June 2023
Issue publication date: 15 January 2024
Abstract
Purpose
Israel ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and has subsequently worked towards putting disability-empowering policies and facilities in place. This study explores the experiences of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel with disabilities in everyday life including education, employment and accessing disability facilities and services.
Design/methodology/approach
This study explores the challenges and experiences of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with a disparate group of Arab men and women with various forms of disabilities.
Findings
This research indicates that Arabs with disabilities are either unable to access them or do so with great difficulty relative to their Jewish counterparts. The findings suggest that this is due to one of two reasons: first is institutional discrimination by Jewish and Arab staff, and second is structural discrimination as facilities and services are specifically designed for the Jewish majority and their areas of residence as opposed to Arab residential areas.
Originality/value
Guided by intersectional theory, this article explores how the multiple identities of Arabs with disabilities living in Israel are co-constituted and ordered by different social and political structures which inform their daily lived experiences. This research illustrates that in Jewish politics and institutions, Arabs with disabilities in Israel are “otherised” by being flatly identified as Palestinians; yet, within their Arab communities, they are “otherised” by being reduced solely to their disability. This article examines how this variation in ordering and reduction can lead to specific experiences and forms of discrimination that requires multi-dimensional approaches and ways forward.
Keywords
Citation
Amin, H., Badran, L., Gur, A. and Stein, M.A. (2024), "The experiences of Palestinian Arabs with disabilities in Israel", Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Vol. 43 No. 1, pp. 41-54. https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-01-2023-0032
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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