Settler Colonialism and Capital in Jerusalem
Jerusalem’s urban development under Zionist settler-colonialism is characterized by the imposition of the “30% Arab, 70% Jew” demographic rule (Alkhalili et al., p. 260). This demographic rule has been the guiding axiom for Israeli urban planning in the city, combined with a litany of laws and biopolitical realities that render the native Jerusalemite in a state of “permanent temporariness” (Alkhalili et al., 2014, p. 263). This article aims to analyze the intersection of gentrification, urbanization of capital, and urban planning in Jerusalem and its environs, all in service of Zionist settler colonialism, focusing on the matrix of control that enables such colonial edifices to control Jerusalemites everyday life.
Gentrification is often understood to occur in scenarios that are not settler colonial in nature – it is primarily a phenomenon that replaces a class with another via the demands of capitals. In settler colonial scenarios, that effect is doubled as it can be both an intra-settler gentrification and a type of gentrification that aims to transplant a native people. Capital, in this sense, serves as a primary instrument to expel the Palestinian native population through depriving them of institutions and land as will be seen below.
