i don’t know what i’ll do and who i’ll do it with but i make one single promise to myself and that is that I will protect myself at all costs
does anybody remember that little Sega Poo-Chi robot dog? god. I sometimes really miss being a kid. I look at my niece and I feel this desperate nostalgia watching her learn new things, watching that childlike amazement at everything new that I show her. I’m watching her go through the most incredible process of creative development and language acquisition. The other day she did something incredible. She made this incredibly abstract figure with her blocks and looked at us and said “it’s a horsey” — and I was blown away. Her imagination is blossoming. She’s not yet at the age of playing with toys and dolls, just those magna-tiles that are wildly popular and other blocks. Me and my brother had a big red plastic tub of toys. I was raised on GI Joes and Barbies and dolls and a massive Godzilla figure. I had this limited edition Sonya Blade Mortal Kombat GI Joe that I loved so much, and she was always fighting with Godzilla. Taking him on her own, and winning.
I miss being a kid very much. But I don’t think I envy kids. I’ve come to learn they have very few options. The advancement of corporatism is killing humanity. If it’s this bad when I’m thirty, I’m scared for the world my niece will have to navigate at 30.
good night my friends. tomorrow is a new day. maybe we’ll find a cool rock on the ground and maybe the rain won’t make us sick with nostalgia
I feel I’m desperate for reasons to live. I really am. I go on google everyday and I search for reasons. I haven’t found any on the internet. But I feel if I’m creative enough in my search I’ll find something. I got scared the other day when I paused at Ace Hardware when I saw rope in their window display. It was the briefest pause, just a hesitation — and I caught myself and hurried past. Then I sat a few blocks from city hall and frantically searched for reasons to live. Mostly when I try, I read stupid feel good pieces and sort of scoff to myself and feel worse and more alienated. But that’s besides the point. What I see very clearly is that there is some part of me that is trying so hard to find hope, it’s frantic, it’s trying to push through and find something to grasp onto. I’m trying to help her. That’s why I’ve been taking her out of bed and into the world. That’s why I saw a friend. That’s why I’ve been going to my brother’s, why I carried fruit to a picket line the other day — even if I didn’t stay, why I went to an open mic.
I’m trying to build meaning and beauty rather than hoping I’ll magically stumble upon it — “there has to be something beautiful waiting for me” no — there has to be beauty I’m building in my life, hope I’m actively fostering.
I’m really trying. But it’s hard, and I want to sleep, or die.
Nakba 75 is coming up! Here’s a quick note on how to debunk common arguments that come up to silence the struggle for Palestinian justice. Palestine will be free! 🇵🇸
What is Zionism and How does it Relate to Israel?
Zionism is a political doctrine calling for the establishment of a Jewish State (Israel). It was a fringe ideology which gained traction in the early 20th century in the context of a shifting sociohistorical landscape which included rising anti-semitism in Europe and shifts in global powers and imperialist goals and alliances. Zionism is to Israel what Manifest Destiny was to the United States: a doctrine of settler expansionism.
A broad overview is a story of settler colonialism, land theft, white supremacy, and genocide of Palestinian people. Israel still denies Palestinians access to basic human rights like clean water and electricity. Palestinians are still living under one of the longest ongoing military occupations in history.
In the map below, you can see the tiny Gaza strip on the left side. There is a genocidal blockade on Gaza, and it is often referred to as an open air prison. Israel uses the Gaza Strip as a weapons testing laboratory, in a series of relentless bombing campaigns dressed up as “defense”. Palestinians here are surrounded by Israeli military - land, sea, and air, and cannot leave. In the West Bank (the dotted green territory), Palestinians are subject to cruel practices of Israeli Apartheid, which include surveillance, harassment, arbitrary detention, and arbitrary killings. Israel imposed a comprehensive closure system on the movement of Palestinians in the West Bank which includes a web of Israeli military checkpoints, blockades, blocked roads, gates and the winding fence/wall. In addition to curtailing movement between Palestinian communities, it separates Palestinians from their agricultural land, and hampers Palestinians’ access to basic services, such as education and healthcare, and to work. Palestinians under occupation are subject to Israeli military law (with a conviction rate of nearly 100%) where Israelis have access to civil tribunals. Israeli military law bans Palestinians from driving on Jewish only roads, waving Palestinian flags, or printing political materials.
Censorship through Conflation: Is it anti-semitic to oppose Zionism?
No. Zionism is a political doctrine, not a religion. Not all Zionists are Jewish, and not all Jewish people are Zionists. To say that anti-zionism is anti-semitic is ahistorical and ignores the long, proud history of Jewish opposition to Zionism. It ignores the Jewish orthodox opposition to Zionism. It also serves to silence the activism of the Jewish people today rejecting this strategic conflation. It is anti-semitic to conflate the two, because it constructs a monolithic Jewish identity which necessitates complicity with Israeli crimes. Zionists have used intimidation, harassment, and doxxing to silence Jewish dissidents. This conflation is a violence against Judaism.
Is Zionism the same as Judaism? Is Israel the same as a Religion? Is this a religious conflict?
No. Zionism is roughly 130 years old. Judaism is thousands of years old. Zionism is a political doctrine, Judaism is a religion. A nation-state is not a religion, not even an ethno-state. A nation-state has sociopolitical and economic goals and appropriates religion in order to meet them. The “conflict” in Israel/Palestine is not a religious conflict between Jews and Muslims, it is a settler colonial project. The displacement of the indigenous population includes Jewish Palestinians. The call for “Free Palestine” includes Palestinian Jews.
Is Zionism racist?
Yes. Zionism is not about preserving the interests and securing the safety of the Jewish people. It is about preserving the interests of white European settlers in historic Palestine. Zionists have involuntarily sterilized Ethiopian Jews in Israel, and violently dispossessed Mirzahi Jews (indigenous to historic Palestine). Zionism is a violence to all non-Ashkenazim (non-European) Jews. Theodor Herzl, the (notably, atheist) founder of the Zionist Doctrine, declared that the peaceful practice of Judaism was an obstacle to the goals of Zionism. Zionism has always been an ideology of colonialism, genocide, land theft, and white supremacy. Further, Herzl declared that “the anti-Semites will become our most dependable friends, the anti-Semitic countries our allies.” Zionism is racist and anti-semitic.
“It’s A so-called ‘Complicated Situation’ Spanning Thousands of Years”
No. The occupation of Palestine thrives on ignorance, and this line serves to obfuscate a relatively short history. Zionism emerged in the late 19th century. Israel was established through violence and seizure of land in 1948. 750,000 Palestinians were displaced. The Jewish majority is maintained artificially through displacement today. There are people alive today who are older than the state of Israel. It does not require any advance degree to know that apartheid and genocide are bad. This line serves to discourage people from investigating the issue and speaking about it. This “thousands of years” and “ancestral lands” narrative peddled by Zionists is an attempt to use the bible as a real estate deed. Nobody is denying that the land of Israel is significant for people of the Jewish faith. Simply put, do you support religious justifications for violence? If not, then reject Zionism. Do your research and do not doubt yourself. In the U.S., we are bombarded with pro-Israeli propaganda as it aligns with U.S. imperialist propaganda. Be smart. Check your sources. Read Palestinian history. Read Pro-Palestine Israeli voices.
“I Support a Two-State Solution”
That’s great, but Israel does not, and never has. Revisionist Zionism (propped up by the current Israeli government) is a doctrine of territorial maximalism. Refer to the map above and see how Israel has systematically atomized any contiguous Palestinian territory. Palestine is being wiped off the map.
“After the formation of a large army in the wake of the establishment of the state, we will abolish partition and expand to the whole of Palestine."— Ben Gurion, First Israeli Prime Minister
“"There is not going to be a Palestinian state within the tiny land of Israel," he said, referring to the area from the Jordan river to the Mediterranean. "It's just not going to happen. A Palestinian state would be a disaster for the next 200 years.” – Naftali Bennett, current Prime Minister
“Isn’t it Anti-semitic to focus on Israel? What about China? What about x, y, or z other human rights abuses?”
It is not anti-semitic to focus on Israel. As American taxpayers, we have a right to be concerned with the use of our money. We have a responsibility to remain aware of how our dollars are being used, and to dismantle the military industrial complex. Palestine is the heart of the struggle against U.S. imperialism and U.S. wars of aggression. The alliance between the U.S. and Israel is one of the most critical to the maintenance of U.S. empire. our domestic police forces are trained on an exchange program in Israel, where they learn military tactics for the purposes of civilian policing. Militarism abroad is directly tied to police violence at home. Over $160 billion dollars have been given in military aid to Israel. $10 million per day is given to Israeli military. To learn more about the funding of Israeli military forces and the goals of this aid, read Jewish Voice for Peace’s “Deadly Exchange” report. Defund the police means defund Israel. Israel plays a specific and very strategic role in carrying out the will of U.S. imperialism. This is why it is important to focus on Israel/Palestine.
“What is Apartheid?”
Apartheid is a system of domination of one racial group over another. You may have heard this word in conjunction with South African apartheid. It is a form of political, economic, and social inequality maintained through segregation.
“Is Israel Committing the Crime of Apartheid?”
Yes. Visit the Amnesty International report, the Human Rights Watch report, and the Israeli human rights org B’Tselem’s report to learn more about what apartheid in Israel looks like.
“What is BDS? Is BDS calling for the eradication of Jewish people?”
No. The model of boycott, divestment, and sanctions was used to end apartheid in South Africa. Boycotts involve withdrawing support from Israel's apartheid regime, complicit Israeli sporting, cultural and academic institutions, and from all Israeli and international companies engaged in violations of Palestinian human rights. Divestment is the call for institutions such as schools, churches, banks, local councils and other institutions to stop investments into companies which sustain Israeli apartheid. Sanctions campaigns pressure governments to fulfil their legal obligations to end Israeli apartheid, and not aid or assist its maintenance, by banning business with illegal Israeli settlements, ending military trade and free-trade agreements, as well as suspending Israel's membership in international forum. BDS is a call for the end to Israeli apartheid. Israel must be culturally, economically, and militarily isolated. Apartheid must fall. Participate in consumer boycotts, call for institutional divestment, and pressure the government to place sanctions on Israel.
“But Hamas—”
Hamas is 33 years old, Israeli violence is an issue predating the existence of Hamas by decades. Further, Israel funded the creation of Hamas in order to fight other Palestinian liberation organizations. Hamas is a red herring equivalent to the right-wing’s use of “Antifa” - a rhetorical boogeyman phrase used to justify the crackdown on left-wing groups. In the case of Israel, the boogeyman Hamas is used to justify grossly disproportionate retaliation. Take the killing of 3 Israeli teenagers in 2014, and ask yourself whether the retaliation of 2,000 Palestinians slain is a proportionate response. Reject the narrative that Israel is a country yearning for peace in the context of Palestinian terror. Understand that Israel is a highly militarized force with sophisticated propaganda and weaponry, while Palestine does not have any army at all, and the rockets Hamas sends to Israel are made from scrap metal gathered from the missiles Israel sends.
“Do you Think Israel Has a Right to Exist?”
This is a question which inevitably comes up in discussion about Israel and Palestine. It is a disingenuous question meant to imply that you are advocating for the eradication of Jewish people if you oppose the state of Israel. It is the strategic conflation at play again. Nation-states have no natural rights to exist. People have a right to exist – Jewish people have a right to exist with safety and dignity. A more accurate rephrasing of the question is: do you think settlers have a right to violently displace 750,000 indigenous Palestinians to supplant a settler apartheid regime which maintains an artificial majority through violence and dispossession? How you feel about Israel’s so-called “right to exist” is heavily contingent on your knowledge of how it came to be a state at all. Watch 1948: Creation and Catastrophe to learn about the violence through which Israel was born.
“How can I Promote Jewish Safety?”
You can promote Jewish safety by rejecting Zionism, which drives a wedge between religious minorities in a rising tide of white supremacist violence, putting Jewish people at risk. You can promote Jewish safety by recognizing that the real antisemitic menace comes from the far-right and not from Palestinian liberation movements. Always separate Judaism from Zionism. Talk about the existence of non-Ashkenazi Jews. Zionism erases their claim to Judaism, and erases their history and lived reality today in both Israel and in the broader Jewish diaspora.
“What Can I do for Palestine?”
First, don’t stop talking about Palestine! Be that person in your friend group or your workplace that’s the expert on Palestine. Explain the issue to people who don’t understand. The occupation thrives off of ignorance.
Second, boycott Israel. It’s going to take more than just educating people to stop Israel’s crimes.
There are a number of big companies who operate in Israeli territory (including illegal settlements) , which boosts the regime’s economy and allows them to invest more money in bullets, tear gas, and prisons.
Learn which companies support the occupation and refuse to buy their products.
Finally, join an organization. No matter how much boycotting, protesting, and educating you do, if you do it as an individual, you will be much less effective than if you’re working in conjunction with a group of people who share the same goal. It’s going to take sustained commitment and continuous work on our parts to achieve the total liberation of Palestinian lands, so don’t do it alone. Look into local organizations organizing protests for Palestine and if there isn’t one, start one.
As people living in the United States, every time we pay taxes, we’re paying into the nearly $4 billion dollars in unconditional military aid that the US gives to Israel every year. Ask yourself, are you okay with *this?* Are you okay with your tax dollars funding this? People in this country don’t have jobs, healthcare, they’re drowning in debt, yet the war mongers in our government want to fund *this.* If that makes you uncomfortable, join the movement, fight for Palestine.
“Where can I learn more?”
Watch:
1948: Creation and Catastrophe (free on tubi): Learn about the creation of the Israeli state from the perspective of Zionist paramilitary defectors and Palestininan survivors.
Gaza Fights for Freedom (free on youtube): Learn about crackdowns on peaceful protests in the Great March of Return (2018)
Five Broken Cameras by Guy Davidi
The Lobby by Al Jazeera Investigations
To See if I’m Smiling by Tamar Yarom
Read:
Palestine, Israel, and the U.S. Empire by Richard Becker
The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine by Israeli Historian Ilan Pappe
The Question of Palestine by Edward W. Said
The Israel Lobby by John Mearscheimer & Stephen M. Walt
Returning to Haifa by Ghassan Kanafani
The General’s Son: Journey of an Israeli in Palestine by Miko Peled
Justice for Some: Law & the Question of Palestine by Noura Erakat
Sources:
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2302309/how-and-why-israel-helped-create-hamas
Bund
Bundjewishvirtuallibrary.org
My Great-Grandfather the Bundist | by Molly Crabapple | The New York Review of Books
American Council for Judaism
https://academic.oup.com/jah/article-abstract/78/3/1138/742991?redirectedFrom=PDF
https://forward.com/opinion/463170/birthright-if-not-now-max-berger-zionism/
https://jewishvoiceforpeace.org/
https://jewishvoiceforpeace.org/zionism/
1948: Creation and Catastrophe
Palestine, Israel, and the U.S. Empire by Richard Becker
Gaza Fights for Freedom, by documentarian Abby Martin
Title: Troubled
Artist: Wassily Kandinsky
Date: 1917
Style: Abstract Art
Genre: Abstract










