Street Renaming as a Means of Symbolic Insult and a Diplomatic Slap in International Relations

Abstract

This article finds that states can use street renaming as an act of retaliation against other international actors (states and international organizations). Specifically, it shows how states can employ street renaming to symbolically insult and thus diminish their opponent’s sense of self. After situating the practice of retaliatory street renaming within the study of emotions in international relations (IR), and symbolic insults in diplomacy, in particular, the article surveys a multitude of cases in which states used street renaming to humiliate and defy other international actors. To further substantiate this thesis, the article then delves into one illustrative case: Israel’s 1975 decision to rename all streets carrying the name of the United Nations ‘Zionism Street’ in response to UN General Assembly Resolution 3379, which determined that ‘Zionism is a form of racism and racial discrimination’. The article concludes by calling for more scholarly attention to street renaming and other symbolic acts in IR.