A Quiet Revolution: The First Palestinian Intifada and Nonviolent Resistance

The unexpected victory by Hamas in the Palestinian elections has once again thrown the Middle East peace process into turmoil. At this critical juncture there has never been a more crucial moment to publish this essential new history by renowned peace activist Mary Elizabeth King. In A Quiet Revolution, King argues that the first Palestinian intifada was characterized by a massive nonviolent social mobilization, rooted in popular committees, and often steered by women. These committees adopted ingenious and durable strategies that began to lead to political results--among them the beginnings of a negotiated settlement. King traces the tragic movement away from peaceful protest following the killing of four Palestinian laborers in Gaza and charts the PLOs increasing contempt for nonviolent struggle. She details the complicity of the media in this escalation of violence--television crews would not cover peaceful protests, but Palestinian boys throwing rocks at Israeli soldiers would always attract foreign camera crews. Drawing on the history of nonviolent movements--from the strategies of Martin Luther King Jr. in the American South, to the student uprising in the Balkans, to the Serbian activists who brought down Eduard Shevardnadze's regime in Georgia--King argues that it is only through nonviolent strategies that a negotiated peace can be achieved with Israel.