Blaming the Victims: Spurious Scholarship and the Palestinian Question

Blaming the Victims: Spurious Scholarship and the Palestinian Question
by Edward W. Said and Christopher Hitchens.

The book critically examines the historical fate of the Palestinians, which has often been justified by spurious academic attempts to dismiss their claim to a home within the boundaries of historical Palestine and even to deny their very existence.

The book begins with a thorough exposé of the fraudulent assertions of Joan Peters concerning the indigenous inhabitants of Palestine prior to 1948. It then turns to similar instances in Middle East research where the truth about the Palestinians has been systematically suppressed.
The contributors delve into the complex and multifaceted historical and political issues that lie at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They critically analyze the selective use of demographic data to deny the historical, pre-Zionist existence of Palestinians in the present state of Israel.
The book also examines the long-standing controversy surrounding whether Palestinians who left their homes during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war did so at the behest of Arab governments or under pressure from Israeli forces. It presents evidence proving the existence of high-level Israeli directives for expelling Palestinians from their homes.

Blaming the Victims serves as a powerful critique of the distorted propaganda about PLO terrorism and the inhumane treatment and conditions faced by the Palestinians in the occupied territories of Palestine and Gaza. It is a significant contribution to the discourse on the Palestinian question, shedding light on the realities of the occupation.

Since the 1948 war which drove them from their heartland, the Palestinian people have consistently been denied the most basic democratic rights. Blaming the Victims shows how the historical fate of the Palestinians has been justified by spurious academic attempts to dismiss their claim to a home within the boundaries of historical Palestine and even to deny their very existence.
Beginning with a thorough exposé of the fraudulent assertions of Joan Peters concerning the indigenous inhabitants of Palestine prior to 1948, the book then turns to similar instances in Middle East research where the truth about the Palestinians has been systematically suppressed: from the bogus—though still widely believed—explanations of why so many Palestinians fled their homes in 1948, to today’s distorted propaganda about PLO terrorism. The volume also includes sharp critiques of the wide consensus in the USA which supports Israel and its territorial ambitions while maintaining total silence about the competing reality of the Palestinians.