For Palestine, an ongoing horror
The latest conflicts in Gaza point to a longstanding injustice.
One of the many protests for Palestinian liberation that have taken place around the globe, this one being in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.
May 20, 2021
“We know all too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.” This is what anti-apartheid activist and South African president Nelson Mandela said many years ago, and these words remain true to this day. He, of course was on the United States’ terrorist watch list until 2008, which is quite fitting, and helps us to better comprehend the America’s staunch opposition to and demonization of those standing up to colonialism and apartheid, including those in Palestine.
Tensions between Palestinians and Israeli settlers have been high since the occupation began in 1948. However, in recent weeks, conflicts have escalated, largely due to a series of “evictions,” as the media would label the forceful displacement of 13 innocent Palestinian families. Recent airstrikes that have killed at least 42 Palestinians, including 10 children.
While this situation seems to be reaching a boiling point, it is important to remember that Palestinians have faced oppression from the Israeli government for generations. In fact, today the number of Palestinian refugees and their descendants who have been displaced is over 7 million , and since 1967, Israel has demolished over 27,000 Palestinian homes in occupied territory. Additionally, since just 2005, at least 3,838 Palestinians have been murdered by the Israeli state, which is nearly 23 times more than the Israeli death toll in the same time period.
This kind of settler colonialism seems indefensible and completely out of place in the 21st century. However, the occupation, backed fully by the US and most of the other imperial powers of the west, is just as violent and prevalent as other examples of colonialism in the past, including the founding of modern-day America, as well as the brutal imperialism that plagues nearly every single country outside of this imperial core.
In fact, support for Israel from the country that claims to be a defender of human rights and an example for the rest of the world has only strengthened. In the 2019 fiscal year, the United States gave Israel $3.8 billion worth of aid, with the vast majority of this money going to the country’s military budget, directly funding the countless and horrifying war crimes committed by the state against Palestinians.
Even more recently, President Biden approved the United States’ sale of $735 million worth of weapons to the Israeli military, sending a clear message to Palestinians and colonized people across the globe that this country stands firmly in opposition to their liberation. When Vice-President Kamala Harris claimed to “stand with Israel because of our shared values which are so fundamental to the founding of both of our nations,” she could not have been more honest.
For the average American, an honest and critical look at the modern-day occupation of Palestine may seem intimidating and inconvenient because it may force them to evaluate the foundation and values of their own country. However, it is extremely important that we all do this honestly and with a certain degree of objectivity. The truth is both Israel and the United States were created through brutal and forceful colonization and ethnic cleansing, and both states’ horrendous acts of violence and genocide against respective indigenous populations must not be forgotten.
Another point of discussion is how the western media tends to discuss acts of rebellion against colonization and the whitewashing of the true horrors of what is unfolding in Palestine. Many platforms have reduced forceful displacement and demolition of homes to “evictions,” painting the illusion that it is the Israeli government’s legal right to steal the homes of innocent Palestinians. The word “conflict” has been used to discuss the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, seemingly suggesting that a nuclear power backed by billions of dollars aid from western powers is somehow on a level playing field with an indigenous population that has been oppressed by that very state for generations.
While phrases like those may seem minor, they are very important to how readers view the situation and how they form a clear image of what events are going on. When mundane words are used when describing genocide, it creates a sense of apathy among the general public and allows many to ignore the harsh reality of the situation.
Some may counter Palestinian liberation arguments with the belief that Israeli state has the right to self-defense. However, the truth is that the entire foundation of Israel is based on illegal settlements. With the very existence of the state not being legitimized by any legal or moral standards, how can one claim that they have the right to defend themselves against the very people that they oppress? It is clear to see that the Israeli government is the aggressor towards Palestinians, and any retaliation from these people is a direct result of their oppression, rather than the cause of it.
spencer greenberg • Jul 28, 2021 at 6:29 pm
it’s been a few months since my last comment and might i add— weaponizing and misusing the term “genocide” to push an anti-israel agenda is repulsive. not only are you factually inaccurate, you’re trivializing the magnitude of what the word actually means. genocide: “the deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that nation or group.” israel has never committed genocide or anything close to it. from 1960 to now, the palestinian population has increased over five fold. that’s not genocide. your blatant misuse of terms that carry real emotional weight is akin to spitting on the grave of every group that’s actually experienced genocide. as a jew, i’m very familiar with the concept— entire sects of my family were ripped out of their homes and systematically murdered some 70 years ago because they were viewed as an inferior race. put some respect on the names of millions that didn’t get to keep living, stop trivializing words that hold actual weight, and stop committing modern-day blood libel against jews. not a good look.
spencer greenberg • May 21, 2021 at 12:33 pm
while it’s important to speak out for palestinians, this article unfortunately uses reductive language, one-sided explanations, omission of facts, and inaccurate terms in order to do so. first of all, israel is not an apartheid state. apartheid is defined as a “policy or system of segregation or discrimination on grounds of race.” this does not apply to israel whatsoever, as all religious and ethnic minorities have full equal rights under the law. over 20% of israelis are arab muslims and they are legally protected from discrimination and allowed to vote, participate in government, travel freely, and go into any profession they want. this is not apartheid. calling israel an apartheid state trivializes the absolute horrors that black south africans suffered under a brutal, segregationist regime that deemed them subhuman. second of all, there was no “occupation” in 1948. this is historical revisionism. when the british withdrew in ‘48, the UN split the land into two states: one for the jews and one for the arabs. the jewish leadership accepted the deal and the arab leadership did not. they refused to allow a jewish state to exist and instead declared a genocidal war against israel to wipe it off the face of the earth. during this war, in which the combined leadership of palestine, jordan, syria, lebanon, and egypt tried to annihilate israel, arab leaders explicitly expressed their desire to ethnically cleanse the region of jews. despite being vastly underprepared and outnumbered, the jews won and gained territory (which is legal under international law). as a result of this war, around 750,000 palestinians became refugees (850,000+ jews were also expelled from the islamic world yet this article conveniently leaves that out). this is what happened in 1948. ever since then, countless peace proposals have been offered that would’ve created a palestinian state, but they were all refused by the palestinian leadership. the palestinian leadership has also declared war on israel on multiple occasions since then. additionally, in terms of sheikh jarrah, i oppose the evictions. however, this article omits the fact that it’s a private legal dispute between citizens stemming from the fact that four palestinian families did not pay rent for decades. furthermore, israel is not a “settler colonialist” entity. settler colonialism involves a group with no connection to a land invading and establishing control over a native population. this does not apply to israel, as jewish people are an ethnic group and a nation originating from the ancient hebrews and israelites. all ethnic jews are indigenous to the land of modern day israel/palestine and this has been confirmed by archeology and genetic research. it’s impossible to colonize land you’re indigenous to. finally, this article leaves out the fact that hamas (a state department designated terrorist group that advocates for genocide against jews) is in control of the gaza strip. over the last week hamas has fired well over 3,000 rockets into israel for the express purpose of murdering civilians (9 israelis have been murdered, hundreds injured, and ample property destroyed). as a result of this relentless, indiscriminate rocket fire, israel has retaliated by specifically targeting hamas outposts and weapon arsenals in the gaza strip. the reason why the death rates are disproportionate is because hamas uses their own people as human shields, intentionally firing rockets from civilian areas like schools, hospitals, and residential neighborhoods because they want innocent palestinians to die when israel responds. israel also takes extensive measures to prevent civilian casualties (calling every phone in a building before an airstrike, dropping leaflets in arabic that warn civilians to vacate) but hamas forces palestinians to stay inside their homes because they don’t care about their own people. instead of attacking israel for defending itself against terrorists who want jews defenseless and dead, maybe criticize hamas for putting their own people in the direct line of fire and attacking israel in the first place. as a jew, it’s traumatic watching american liberals with no connection to this conflict play devils advocate for those who want me dead. i’m in jerusalem and literally had to run for shelter because of rocket fire. let’s start telling both sides of the story and stop blaming jews for the entire status quo.