Gender and Nation Building in the Middle East: The Political Economy of Health from Mandate Palestine to Refugee Camps in Jordan

From Mandate Palestine to refugee camps in Jordan today, generations of Palestinians have been affected by the reach of the state into their everyday lives. Here, Elise Young offers an analysis of the politics of state building in the Middle East, viewed through the lens of health. Young argues that gendered, raced, and classed constructions of health, as evidenced in malaria eradication campaigns and the regularization of midwifery, are central to such state building processes. She draws on archival documents to uncover British medical administration and American involvement during the Mandate, and in-depth oral histories of Palestinian women refugees in Jordan. Making a powerful case for an alternative historiography of the region, this book will be invaluable for all those interested in Middle East history and politics, nationalism, gender, public health, and refugees.