Palestinian American Women’s Marriages within and beyond Borders

Abstract This article explores American Palestinian women’s discursive strategies and identity politics by which they take control of their marital choices. Through the analysis sixteen in-depth interviews with second-generation women personal observations within community, shows that nationalist religious discourses produced historical contexts respectively stimulated (semi)arranged in-group marriages in 1990s self-initiated exogamous as early 2000s. Among group, Islam has become primary form identification, discourse been circulating Islamic institutions post-1980s. Based on this transformation, study draws strategic use sentiments argues prioritization increased agency spouse selection marriage process. Women’s negotiations an framework also expose ways Muslim counter redefine gender roles fortifying beliefs reinterpreting doctrine.