Barber is a Professor Emeritus of Social Science at the University of Tennessee and holds a PhD. He began work in Gaza in 1994, after an invitation from Brigham Young University to consult on the study of Palestinian families. Over the past thirty years, Barber has connected with more than 10,000 Palestinian households in Gaza, East Jerusalem, and the West Bank.
For people unfamiliar with the timeline of events in 1948, Barber delineates that when the "State of Israel was created," approximately 700,000 to 750,000 Palestinians were either expelled or fled for safety. Four hundred villages were demolished. By the end of 1948, when a return to their former homes was not permitted by Israel, UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) was created. Tents eventually evolved into adobe structures, and then into cinder block.
Camps familiar from the war, such as Khan Younis and Rafah, are described. There are eight camps in the Strip, housing over two-thirds of Gaza's Palestinian refugees. Barber clarifies that this comprises the "original refugees" from 1948, plus "two generations of descendants."
Barber traces developments in the Gaza Strip from the end of the 1948 war through the 1967 war and the seizure of Gaza. He notes that in 1971, "Israel began developing Jewish settlements in Gaza."
To demonstrate how the lives of his subjects, Hammam, Khalil, and Hussam were shaped by the FirstIntifada (1987-1993), he gives a backstory on the regulations implemented over Palestinian life. This included Israeli control over the population, from the economy and culture to legal matters and land/water rights. Part of the approach included a psychological attrition-- through censorship of media, changing the names of streets and towns from Arabic to Hebrew, the destruction of historical sites, and the repression of symbols of Palestinian identity.
Barber stated, "The Intifada was very important because that's when the youth took to the streets in high numbers. To understand Palestinians, you must understand the Intifada. It was Palestinians asserting themselves. There was a lack of honest support by other Arab countries. They had to do this themselves." The Iron Fist policy of collective punishment, introduced by Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin on August 4, 1985, used home demolitions, administrative detention, and disproportionate force.
Hammam, Khalil, and Hussam were born after the Six-Day War and have known nothing but Israeli occupation. Their stories include triumph and tragedy within the context of a reality in Gaza marked by limited job opportunities, restricted movement, violence, and surveillance. Barber emphasizes the younger generation's extensive involvement to illustrate the impact of that period, when twenty-five percent of young Palestinian men were detained or imprisoned.
I spoke with Barber about his efforts to bring the story of Gaza to the public. "No one else has taken readers to the micro level for three decades," he told me. He chose his subjects in 2014 based on accessibility, their varied "personalities and approach to resisting the occupation," and their ease with English. He then transformed the interviews into "narrative prose." Barber also had access to women and children in culturally appropriate settings, which rounded out his portrayal.
Barber has written: "The publicity almost always stereotypes Gaza as a pathetic and vile place and its people as angry and vengeful. It is not and they are not."
Our conversation also included the role of Egypt in the Gaza blockade; calls to Palestinian homes from Israeli commanders warning of imminent bombings ("Israel knows every detail of Gazan life," Barber said); and Israel's support of Hamas to ensure that there would be no negotiating partner.
Barber's portrayals are: Hammam, The Social Man; Khalil, The Defender of Human Rights; and Hussam, The Educator. Each reveals a personal evolution over four to five decades. Their stories can be seen as a microcosm of others. Here is one:
Hussam
In 1986, Hussam was 13. He had spent years absorbing his grandmother's stories about the Nakba. She told him of the military offensives in 1948 and the march to Gaza from the south with 250,000 other people. Settling in the al-Nuseirat refugee camp, the family restarted their lives. Wanting to learn more, Hussam went to the public library in Gaza to expand his knowledge. Information had been banned in Gaza since 1967. The word Palestine (or variations) was not allowed in school books, nor were any maps referencing the original territory.
To share his discoveries with his classmates, Hussam made a poster about "Palestine Across the Ages" to display on the wall. It was welcomed with interest by his peers, but the head Arabic teacher told him to take it down. "Don't you know the soldiers could send me to prison for allowing such a thing in my classroom?" he said.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
