Jerusalem's Light Rail As a Means of Normalisation
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ANTI/THESIS 30 Introduction At first glance, the Jerusalem light rail – ANTI-THESIS The Violence of whose first line was inaugurated only a few Infrastructural months before Casablanca’s – might also appear to atone for a long period of infra- Connectivity: structural neglect. An East-West connec- tion in a city where public transport was Jerusalem’s Light long segregated, it facilitated movement from marginalized Palestinian areas of Rail as a Means East Jerusalem into the city centre. It simi- larly operated on registers of symbolism of Normalisation and affect reflecting a sense of modernity, progress, and comfort – one in which Palestinians were included, seemingly for the first time in half a century of Israeli occupation. And nonetheless, in the sum- Hanna Baumann mer of July 2014, Palestinian residents attacked the light rail in a sensational man- It is commonly claimed that infrastruc public service was attacked by residents. ner, disrupting the operations of the tram- tures are so banal and taken for granted The violent disruption of the light rail, the way for two weeks (Baumann, “The Heavy that they only become visible when they article argues, called attention to the Presence”). It is commonly claimed that collapse or cease to function. Indeed, manner in which Jerusalem’s light rail infrastructures are so deeply embedded Rodgers and O’Neill termed the exclu serves to normalize both Palestinian in our experience of the built environment sion or disconnection of certain areas urban space and movements, thus feed and are so banal or taken for granted that from infrastructural services “infrastruc ing into an agenda of annexation. The they only become visible when they col- tural violence”. In East Jerusalem, where expansion of infrastructural networks, lapse or cease to function (Graham and infrastructure has long been underfunded and the resulting connectivity of previ Marvin; Graham and McFarlane 12). and Palestinian Jerusalemites are exclu ously marginalized areas, then, can also Indeed, the exclusion or disconnection of ded from access to many urban services, act as a form of violence rather than certain areas from infrastructural services infrastructure also became apparent as a atonement for past neglect. has been termed “infrastructural violence” political question when it appeared in the (Rodgers and O’Neill 401). In East form of a new light rail connection – and Keywords: Jerusalem, infrastructure, Jerusalem, where infrastructure has long even more so when this ostensibly useful mobility, transport, occupation, light rail been underfunded (Margalit; Ir Amim; Middle East – Topics & Arguments # 10 –2018 ANTI/THESIS 31 ACRI) and Palestinian Jerusalemites – in – not only in the common political par- dence to the allegation that the tram’s particular those living in areas cut off by lance of maintaining relations with Israel, routing is at least partially motivated by the Separation Wall (Al Khalili, De Leo and but in the Foucauldian sense. Following bolstering the annexation of East Dajani; Hammoudeh, Hamayel and Foucault, normalization is an attempt to Jerusalem. Thus, the Palestinian leader- Welchman) – are excluded from access to “reduce the most unfavorable, deviant” ship views the light rail project as cement- many urban services, infrastructure also elements and “bring them in line with the ing the occupation by serving settlements became apparent as a political question normal” (Foucault 62). Rather than exclud- and as deepening the annexation of East when it appeared – and even more so ing and isolating Palestinians, the normal- Jerusalem (Barghouti). The physical link- when the ostensibly useful public service izing approach includes them in the sys- ages established by hard infrastructure, of the light rail was attacked by residents. tem and, in incorporating Palestinian however, are only one aspect of the light space and mobilities, minimizes their rail’s normalizing effect. Beyond merely This violent disruption of the light rail, this deviation to align them with the interest connecting in functional terms, linked article argues, calls attention to the man- of state power. mobility flows also function on symbolic ner in which the expansion of infrastruc- registers, which even operate through the tural networks can also act as a form of Crossing Lines bodies of those moving. The light rail violence. Based on eight months of on- The first line of the tram (the Red Line), instils a sense of familiarity with Palestinian site research in the frame of my PhD which was completed in 2011, links the spaces that were previously out of bounds research, I show how Jerusalem’s light rail settlement of Pisgat Ze’ev to the adminis- to Israelis and thereby lays the ground- makes both Palestinian urban space and trative and commercial center of West work for appropriation of those spaces. Its movements “legible” (Scott) in order to Jerusalem. Along its 14-kilometre, 23-stop ability to facilitate a temporary, securitized normalize this part of the city and its resi- route from the northeast of the city to presence of settlers in a Palestinian area dents. As Palestinian circulations are inte- Mount Herzl in the southwest, it makes five may be more powerful than the obduracy grated into the Israeli system of the city, stops in Israeli settlements in East of its tracks; its ability to reconstitute they are aligned with the interests of the Jerusalem, three in the Palestinian neigh- Palestinian behaviour in public spaces Israeli state. While the violence of the bourhood of Shuafat (one on the border may have further-reaching implications Israeli mobility regime has generally been to Beit Hanina), and three just on the than a physical link alone. located in the restriction of Palestinian Green Line (see Map 1). movement (Hammami; Handel; Kotef), The Appeal of Normalization: Modernity the argument here is thus that even an The planned expansion of the Red Line, as and Tolerance expansion of urban service provision well as a planned second and third line, The co-presence of different groups on facilitating movement might be seen as will connect some of the most populous the tram has been used to construct the violent. This violence lies in the ongoing settlements in the north and south of East light rail as a symbol of a modern and cos- process of East Jerusalem’s normalization Jerusalem to the city centre, giving cre- mopolitan metropolis (Nolte and Yacobi). Middle East – Topics & Arguments # 10 –2018 ANTI/THESIS 32 Transportation Masterplan argued that the light rail transit has the potential of bringing various population groups closer, promoting peaceful co-existence, and thus setting Jerusalem as a role-model of coexis- tence in the Middle-East. (Jerusalem Transportation Masterplan 2) This view, echoed repeatedly (Alstom), aligns with observations made in a report the municipality commissioned from Richard Florida’s Creative Cities Group, which sees “diversity” as “one of Jerusalem’s strongest assets” but argues that the city needed to become more “tol- erant” by encouraging the “blending” of different groups (Creative Class Group). Palestinian acceptance of the tram was thus sought through extensive commu- nity outreach work through schools and mosques, but also through the use of Arabic signage and announcements, nei- ther of which can be found on other Israeli public transport. It also emerged from the ● West Jerusalem ● Settlement affective and atmospheric appeal of the ● Green Line ● Palestinian neighbourhood infrastructure itself. Operating on the level Map 1: Locations of Light Rail stations and the route of its Red Line since 2011. Courtesy of the author. of “fantasy and desire,” as Larkin argues, “infrastructures create a sensing of In seeking to convince Alstom, one of the pied land, that the light rail was a peaceful modernity” and make aspirations emo- CityPass members criticized for taking project, a briefing by the Jerusalem tionally real (Larkin 332-4). The futuristic, part in an infrastructural project on occu- silver train with its streamline silhouette Middle East – Topics & Arguments # 10 –2018 ANTI/THESIS 33 stands in compelling contrast to the his- toric cityscape through which it passes, an image of progress difficult to disavow. For Palestinians, being offered a high-quality urban service by the municipality, and being included in this showcase project, was unusual and unexpected. They noted the level of comfort of the JLR, with the unimpeded movement of the train result- ing in an embodied sense of modernity, what Sheller refers to as a “co-constitution of motion and emotion” (Sheller). The old buses of the East Jerusalem bus compa- nies were described as loud, hot, rattling, and often stuck in traffic. The light rail, by contrast, was air conditioned and moved smoothly and quickly, providing an unde- niably more comfortable experience (see Figure 1). Normalization and Security Figure 1: The Jerusalem Light Rail on its route along the Green Line, 2014. Courtesy of the author. In addition to projecting an image of har- monious shared space, Palestinian usage to minimize risk (Foucault 65). In addition along the Shuafat main road and adjacent of the light rail was also aimed at protect- to cancelling out the dangers of areas, ostensibly to identify individuals ing the infrastructure and the Jewish pas- Palestinian opposition by compelling East attacking the tram (Interview with CEO, sengers on it, as the former CEO of the Jerusalemites to partake in the light rail Bladeworx). As the light rail became the light rail operator noted (Interview with project, a broad range of more conven- site of increased incidents of violence Former CEO, CityPass). Here we see how tional means of protection and surveil- during 2015, Jerusalem’s Israeli mayor, Nir security thinking and normalization are lance were put in place to securitize the Barkat, visited Beit Hanina in October intertwined: rather than exclude danger- tram (Interview with VP Projects and 2015 to investigate “ways of restoring ous elements, as disciplinary power does, Consulting Services, MTRS 3, 31 July security to the light rail line in that area of normalization in a security-based system 2014).