Cultural Capital of a Minoritized Elite: The Intersection of Class and Ethnonational Identities of the Emerging Palestinian Elite in Israel
Dalia Halabi is a sociologist of education who adopts a “study up” approach to critically examine educational and social disparities. She holds a PhD in Leadership and Policy in Education from the University of Haifa and an MA in Conflict Management and Mediation from Tel Aviv University. Her doctoral research explored the formation of elite identity among Palestinian students and alumni of private schools in Israel, analyzing how educational experiences shape distinction, belonging, and social trajectories within a context of national marginalization. Currently, Dalia lectures in the Department of Education at Oranim Academic College and serves as a mentor for principals in the Mandel Foundation’s Leadership Program. Dalia combines academic inquiry with over two decades of experience in civil society and feminist activism. She formerly served as Director of Dirasat – The Arab Center for Rights and Policy, an NGO that utilizes applied research to influence policy and advocate for the rights and equity of the Palestinian community at local and national levels. She has also worked with numerous NGOs on issues related to educational justice, gender equity, and political participation. Her work is rooted in critical theory and decolonial thought, aiming to bridge research, policy, and grassroots action in pursuit of transformative social change and justice. In the academic year 2025/26, she is a EUME Fellow at the Forum Transregionale Studien.
Cultural Capital of a Minoritized Elite: The Intersection of Class and Ethnonational Identities of the Emerging Palestinian Elite in Israel
My project examines the cultural capital of the ‘minoritized elite’ (Higgins et al., 2024) among Palestinians in Israel, focusing on its defining features: education, knowledge, skills, lifestyle, and tastes. Within the Palestinian minority in Israel, a new elite has emerged in the past three decades – largely through education and academic success. Members of this small but growing elite are privileged within their national group yet marginalized as citizens of the Jewish state. I will examine their cultural capital and its role in shaping the identity of Palestinians inside Israel, the interactions both within their community (locally and transnationally) and with the broader Israeli society. This analysis will also illuminate the dynamics between dominant and non-dominant cultural capital (Carter, 2003). While significant research has focused on cultural capital among marginalized groups such as Afro Americans, Latinos and immigrants (Bueker, 2017; Weis & Cipollone, 2013), far less attention has been given to the experiences of elites within these communities (Meghji, 2019; Wallace, 2022), and rarely on the cultural capital of the Palestinian elite in Israel. My study will offer theoretical and practical insights into how cultural capital functions in racially and politically stigmatized contexts and deepen the understanding of the dynamics of elite formation within marginalized communities.
