Incarcerated Childhood and the Politics of Unchilding

Incarcerated Childhood and the Politics of Unchilding explores the political work of violence that creates, directs, governs, transforms, and constructs colonized children as dangerous, racialized others, enabling their eviction from childhood. It also documents violations of children's rights and the consequences of this for their present and future well-being, while charting children's resistance to and power to interrupt colonial violence, reclaiming childhood, and reimagining Palestinian futures.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 176 pages
Publication date: 26 May 2022
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Who has the right to a safe and protected childhood?

Incarcerated Childhood and the Politics of Unchilding delves into the profound understanding of children as political capital in the hands of those in power. It critically engages children's voices alongside archival, historical, and ethnographic material in Palestine, offering a concept of unchilding. Through Shalhoub-Kevorkian's exploration, the book exposes the political work of violence aimed at creating, directing, governing, transforming, and constructing colonized children as dangerous, racialized others, ultimately enabling their eviction from the realm of childhood itself. Unchilding penetrates children's everyday intimate spaces, as well as their bodies and lives, enabling a complex machinery of violence against Palestinian children: imprisonment, injuries, loss, trauma, and militarized political occupation.

While the book documents violations of children's rights and the consequences this has for their present and future well-being, it also charts children's resistance to and power to interrupt colonial violence, reclaiming childhood, and, with it, Palestinian futures.

This powerful and thought-provoking work sheds light on the ongoing struggles of children in occupied territories and highlights the urgent need for their rights to be recognized and protected. It serves as a call to action for policymakers, activists, and individuals to advocate for a safer and more nurturing environment for all children, regardless of their background or circumstances.

Weight: 247g
Dimension: 229 x 152 x 10 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781108454872