Commemorating Narratives of Violence: The Yitzhak Rabin Memorial Day in Israeli Schools

Abstract

Based on an analysis of ceremonies in thirty Israeli schools, this article focuses on the way in which the Israeli educational system grappled with the problematic narrative of Yitzhak Rabin's assassination, a narrative that challenged the system's basic assumptions about commemorative logic. The challenge was met by playing with the narrative's multiple frames of meaning (protagonist, act, and context). Rabin's image and biography were elevated and nearly sanctified, while the assassination itself was individualized and the context in which it occurred was de-politicized and virtually bypassed. Thus, the commemoration of even a problematic narrative of political violence could be held on school premises, where it could meet the challenge of enhancing unity and proud national identity. Even events that are not heroic, even shameful, and which do not enjoy a consensus can be reframed in a consensual manner.