Palestine

This article was revised in November of 2023, and reflects a rapidly changing situation following the Hamas massacre on October 7th and the subsequent Israeli military response. I’ve attempted to center the discussion on the larger systems and dynamics at place, rather than the day-to-day headlines. As such, some information may lose relevance, some aspects may already be resolved or changed, but I thought it important to discuss this conflict, as the stakes are too high to ignore. It also serves as a way to better understand my thinking and vision, and how I would approach similar situations in the future.

Genuine compassion requires us to empathize with the people of Israel, to feel the pain of losing a loved one to an act of violence, the trauma of a moment of joy giving way to unimaginable horror. To acknowledge the history of a community that has too often been defined by pain and vulnerability in society. To come face-to-face with that dark realization that violence has yet again been exacted upon the Jewish community.

The events of October 7th were truly barbaric. The scale of violence unfathomable, the method of destruction sadistic. Nobody, regardless of who they are or where they were born, who their leaders are, or what their country has done, deserves to be the victim of this kind of horror. To the families of those who were killed or brutalized, a certain trauma exists, an emptiness that will never truly be filled again. It is heartbreaking beyond words.

Genuine compassion also requires us to identify with the people of Palestine, who remain prisoners in their own land. Victims of an occupying force, subject to daily humiliations, living in a state of forced poverty, and denied the liberty and justice that are inalienable to every human being. How can there be hope for the child living in Gaza? How can there be a life of contentment when your every move is surveilled, and every institution exists to dehumanize you? When day after day after day, another school is bulldozed, another home destroyed to make way for an illegal settlement, another funeral ending in gunfire by settlers or the Israeli military.

This is the foundation upon which any worthwhile discussion must be built. If we truly care about doing what is right for everyone, about achieving justice in this conflict, we must speak from a place of common understanding and common humanity. To move beyond the simple arguments made in bad faith that pit Israelis against Palestinians and Muslims against Jews. Conflating Palestinians with the actions of Hamas is as incorrect as conflating all Israelis (or even more ignorantly all Jews) with the worst actions of the Israeli military or settlers. We must always remind ourselves to view one another as individual human beings, each deserving to live out their lives in the pursuit of happiness, free from the pain and trauma that each community must now bear.

President Kennedy wisely observed that “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable”. So we must ask ourselves, is peaceful revolution possible in Palestine? Has Israel, with its overwhelming military, who controls the power, movement, and humanitarian aid to Gaza, made peaceful revolution possible? Or has the current far-right government and settler-proxies made violence inevitable?

The reality is that oppression of the Palestinian people has not made Israel safer. The horrific killings are proof of that. The continued occupation and oppression of the people of Gaza will lead to more violence, more pointless deaths, more destruction, and misery. With each airstrike that levels entire city blocks, killing hundreds in its wake, how many will take up violence in the name of vengeance? In the absence of justice, how many will channel their frustrations through the barrel of a gun? It is as predictable as it is tragic.

The biggest impediment for safety and prosperity for both communities is the far-right ideology that has taken over Israel’s government. It should not be forgotten that just months before the October 7th attack, the Israeli people were rallying in the street to prevent what they believed was an authoritarian attempt by Prime Minister Netanyahu to overthrow the judiciary. It should shock no one that this man now stands accused of committing war crimes ranging from collective punishment to the indiscriminate killing of civilians, too many of which have been children. What is the end goal? What is the future of the region? If you go by the public statements of too many of the extremists rising through the ranks of the Israeli far-right, they aim to remove the Palestinian people from their lands, one way or another, and replace them with Israeli settlements. That position must be unacceptable to everyone.

Of special note to the American public is that what Israel does in Palestine is done with American-provided weapons and that our leadership bears some degree of responsibility for what is done with those weapons. We have neither the right nor the power to unilaterally enforce our desired outcome upon another people, as the wars in Iraq and Vietnam have made abundantly clear. And what is also clear to me is that it is morally unacceptable to provide a blank check for armaments to a man accused of attempting to destroy the democratic norms of his own country and indiscriminately bombing women and children. We already have laws on the books (Leahy laws) that are supposed to condition military aid to foreign countries based on universal humanitarian standards, but they are not enforced due to political reasons. We have to rise above the pressure of those advocating in bad faith like AIPAC, or we will share the full responsibility of the death and trauma in Palestine.

When it comes to the strange nature of discourse in the U.S., I have yet to meet the strawman who proclaims “Israel has no right to defend itself” and yet again and again I hear the counter: “Israel has the right to defend itself”. On TV, from university presidents to corporate CEOs, and near-unanimity among politicians, that is repeated in an almost trance-like state. They refuse to acknowledge what the rest of the world has no problem calling out, hiding behind bad-faith arguments and ad hominem attacks. Our country is almost alone in the way it talks about this conflict and shuts down dissent. We find ourselves perpetually at odds with almost the entire international community when it comes to this issue:

Why? I just don’t get it. Why is it so hard to talk about what is going on in Palestine? Why have they taken this radical position that makes us a pariah to almost every single country in the world? What value can you invoke to justify the killing of children and the erasure of an entire culture? It was wrong when the U.S. did it to the Native Americans, when the Ottomans did it to the Armenians, and when the Germans did it to Jews in Europe. If the roles were reversed and it was Israelis living under Palestinian occupation and oppression, it would be just as wrong. I just don’t see how you can justify an indefinite occupation and continued settler encroachment onto Palestinian lands with no end in sight.

A permanent solution can no longer be delayed, or the inevitable result will be greater and greater violence. A one-state solution is possible, as we’ve seen in the miraculous story of Nelson Mandela and South Africa, but will obviously face political resistance from uncompromising Zionist factions in Israel. A two-state solution is more likely, but faces a similarly fierce resistance from Israeli leaders like Netanyahu who want to completely remove the Palestinians. If a two-state solution is implemented, Palestine must be granted true independence, not the conservatorship of a puppet government or economic and political servitude and exploitation. They must be free to live their own lives on their own terms, free of violence, as should the people of Israel. Whichever solution, the people of Israel must demand their leaders act in the cause of humanity, it is with them that the power of change is vested. As for the role of the U.S., we should continue to act as negotiators when asked to, treat every life as equally sacred, and end the policy of unconditional arms to any country which fails to uphold human rights. It only serves to add more fuel to the fire and makes everyone less safe. It should be noted that if for instance Israel faces a state-to-state war, there is a legitimate reason to provide aid in defense. But the response to the October 7th attack, the way it has been carried out, does not warrant that type of complicity or tacit approval.

The purpose of leadership, I believe, is to be able to navigate the high emotions that very serious situations like these elicit, validate the perspectives of all involved, and guide us to our higher values of justice rather than vengeance or manipulation from bad actors. I want to see the people of Palestine and Israel happy and thriving, safe and free to pursue their own destinies. We have an enormous amount of influence in this conflict, and bear a degree of responsibility for what happens. Our priority must be a commitment to humanity and justice, especially when it is difficult, especially if it is controversial. Only through those principles can true peace be achieved.