“I broke the law? No, the law broke me!” Palestinian hip-hop and the semiotics of occupation

Abstract

Purpose – This chapter studies the lyrics and music videos of Palestinian hip-hop artists, exploring their narratives of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and constructions of identity and place.

Design/methodology/approach – This semiotic analysis profiles lyrics and music videos found almost exclusively on the Internet. The dominant themes that the chapter discusses emerge directly from the data, creating important connections across borders and requiring a transnational analytical framework.

Findings – Artists in Palestine and in the diaspora appropriate concepts and terminology from criminal justice to narrate life under occupation. In contrast to this construction of occupation, artists also employ metaphors of nature to signify a biological connection to the land of Palestine that represents both victimization and a steadfast and “rooted” resistance. Mapped onto this cross-borders shared semiotics are implications for new understandings of place and identity.

Research limitations – Limitations exist in both content and methodology. Interpreting in the lyrics an embrace of a primordial connection to the land should raise concerns about Orientalist representations of non-Westerners. I devote a section of the chapter to problematizing the primordial Palestinian. In terms of method, I speak no Arabic or Hebrew, though I have taken steps to mitigate this problem, including privileging songs in English or with English translations and employing the assistance of an Arabic and Hebrew speaker.

Originality/value – Despite these limitations, this chapter contributes to an understanding of the transnational potential of hip-hop to craft counter-hegemonic narratives of identity, place, and conflict.

Citation

Schept, J. (2010), "“I broke the law? No, the law broke me!” Palestinian hip-hop and the semiotics of occupation", Deflem, M. (Ed.) Popular Culture, Crime and Social Control (Sociology of Crime, Law and Deviance, Vol. 14), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 91-119. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1521-6136(2010)0000014008