Fled or Expelled? Representation of the Israeli–Arab Conflict in U.S. High School History Textbooks

Assuming that the perceived history of a conflict shapes the potential for peace, this study examined the representation of the Israeli–Arab conflict in eight widely used U.S. high school history textbooks. The analysis focused on two issues that are crucial to the understanding of the conflict: (a) the creation of the 1948 Palestinian refugee problem and (b) the status of the sizeable minority of Arab citizens within Israel. The results indicate that, although several of the textbooks do represent—to some extent—a complex and multifaceted account of the creation of the 1948 Palestinian refugee problem, the existence of Arabs in Israel and their problematic status as a national minority are, in many cases, not clearly described.