Lexington Books The Hilltop Youth: A Stage of Resistance and Counter culture Practice (The Levant and Near East: A Multidisciplinary Book Series)

For more than a decade Israeli society has been witness to the appearance of a new social group, the Hilltop Youth. In the years following the Israeli government's disengagement from the Gaza program in 2005 and the subsequent destruction of settlements in the Gaza Strip, youth and young families have set up settlements on the hilltops of Judea and Samaria and have demonstrated violent, anti-establishment resistance to the state, the IDF, and the police. The appearance of the Hilltop Youth marks a new chapter in the narrative of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict The book studies the youth sub-culture and its ideological structure through an examination of its practices of protest and rebellion. It further explores how the extremist youth group presents a new structural process for border area development, as well as the effects it has on both the micro level-displaying violent and provocative behavior against the local society of the settlers-and on the macro level-against Israeli society. The Hilltop Youth phenomenon is examined through comprehensive ethnographic presentation of the daily routine and activities of the youth. Review Israeli scholar Shimi Friedman, an anthropologist/sociologist at Ariel University, shines the spotlight on one group of marginal Israeli youths, those dubbed 'hilltop youths' by the chattering classes, because of the former's penchant for establishing unauthorised hilltop outposts in proximity to both Jewish and Arab populations in Judea and Samaria. In The Hilltop Youth, an interesting work of cultural anthropology, the author examines the lives of one particular subset of hilltop youths, those clustered in the Hebron region of southern Judea. Employing the tools of his trade ‒ fieldwork and interviews ‒ Friedman arrives at some surprising conclusions about this subset of youths, conclusions that are often at odds with the common perception of hilltop youths.--Israel Affairs Friedman touches upon the most sensitive and fragile issue of Israeli society and, by dismantling it with professional skill and sober vision, makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the marginal Israeli youth gang called Noar Hagvaot (the Hilltop Youth) - not only in the context of youth in distress but also within the framework of geo-politics. Friedman's contribution to the field of anthropology-sociology is invaluable since this topic is potentially explosive which makes this book a crucially important contribution to the field of modern Israeli sociology. He opens up an aperture in this previously untouched field of research and adds the dimension of youth research dynamics, something that is especially important for the understanding of these youths who could easily affect the balance of power in the West Bank.--Ronen A. Cohen, Ariel University This project is a rare combination of anthropological fieldwork and political science analyses. In order to master the issue of "Hilltop Youth," the author lived among these groups of Jewish youngsters in their tiny villages on South Mount Hebron, and meticulously deciphered their human, social and ideological environment. Presenting a first-hand testimony about the social periphery of Jewish settler society within the wild regions of Judea, this study also challenges distorted myths often shaped by local and international reporters. Friedman's research, the first of its kind concerning this specific social group, is necessary for anyone who wishes to establish further knowledge of the subject, beyond its stereotypical manifestations in mass media. Hence, this book is essential for those who study the Arab-Israeli conflict and are honestly curious to deepen their comprehension of the various protagonists within the complex Middle Eastern vicinity.--Eyal Lewin, Ariel University About the Author Shimi Friedman is professor of Sociology at Ariel University