The Israeli Ministry of Education has banned âBorderlineâ from use in high schools.The Ministry explained its decision to ban Dorit Rabinya’s âBorderlineâ from high schools as to maintain âthe identity and heritage of students in every sectorâ and out of concern that âintimate relations between Jews and non-Jews threatens the separate identity.â
âBorderlineâ tells the story of a Jewish Israeli translator and a Palestinian artist falling in love in New York before eventually returning to Tel Aviv and Ramallah, respectively.
The Ministry also asserted that âyoung people of adolescent age donât have the systemic view that includes considerations involving maintaining the national-ethnic identity of the people and the significance of miscegenation.â
Education Minister and member of the right-wing Jewish Home party, Naftali Bennett, approved of the decision.
Rabinyaâs âBorderlifeâ has enjoyed critical acclaim. The book won this yearâs Bernstein Prize for young writers â an annual Israeli literary prize. Furthermore, according to Haaretz, a large number of literature teachers requested that âBorderlifeâ be approved for use in advanced literature classes.
Middle East Eye reported that Shlomo Herzig, the head of literary studies at the ministry, appealed the decision. Herzig commented: âthe acute problem of Israeli society today is the terrible ignorance and racism that is spreading in it, and not concern over intermarriage.’
Herzigâs appeal was denied.
The ministryâs decision to ban Borderline from high schools is reflective of the Israeli governmentâs methodical efforts to not only entrench the occupation, but also to restrict public discourse so that the next generation of Israelis approves of it.
More at AIC official.