Israel is a Mirror of the West

Do we like what we see?

Shared values. That’s what western countries say Israel represents in the Middle East.

What values do we share exactly?

This brings us to what Israel is actually doing.

Francesca Albanese, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, has stated that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Israel is committing acts of genocide.

This genocide has been supported by the USA mostly, but also other western countries, with money and arms. They often deny this to their countries’ citizens, because huge numbers of us object to our governments’ support of killing innocent people and destroying their homes, infrastructure and everything else in Gaza.

For many of us, it’s unthinkable that human beings would be willing to do this. But we can’t forget that most of us are living on lands stolen from aboriginal people. Our cities and towns are the result of past genocides committed by many of our ancestors. And for many of us, the colonialist mindset is deeply rooted.

How many days has this gone on, yet people are still boycotting, demonstrating and speaking out — why? Don’t they tire of it? Don’t they lose interest?

No! As long as it continues, we’ll be speaking out. Genocide should be a red line for everyone, but when we see that our political leaders are supporting it, it’s as though Israel is holding up a mirror for all of us, especially those who have power.

What does this mirror reflect back to those who lead our countries?

• genocide is acceptable to them, since they’re willing to support it with arms and our tax dollars

• many among us are willing to go along, and not speak out about it for fear of reprisal

• our leaders are willing to use all kinds of intimidation tactics — calling us anti-semitic, brutally cracking down on and misrepresenting protesters, arresting journalists — all for objecting to genocide

• Colonialism and all manner of barbarism seem to be acceptable if committed in Palestine to these leaders

• Israel will be supported as it commits all manner of war crimes: targeting health workers and journalists, murdering children, rape, torture, using starvation as a weapon. None of this seems to faze our political leaders

• Mainstream media often airbrushes these crimes out and amplifies the voices of leaders who support genocide

• People who speak out about this will be silenced at political conventions of parties that are supporting genocide

What are we to do with this? Do these people really represent us?

In my last post, I shared this video of Toni Morrison, and I’m going to transcribe her words, since I know many of us are too busy to click on links. I think many of us share a similar opinion as it applies to supporters of genocide. Here are her words:

“…there were women who would rush out to the schoolyards when they were trying to integrate schools and they would push over the school buses that were bringing black children to these schools — push them over — and set them afire.

And when I saw that I was wondering if I could ever get a group of black women under any circumstances, from any walk of life to hurt some white children, to set a bus on fire full of white children for any reason: prostitutes, drug addicts, ministers, teachers — black women of any level. Could I call them all together and say we have got to burn these white children, and I didn’t believe I could ever find that.

So I thought those white mothers — they weren’t just white women. They had actually had children, and knew what that was like, but they could do that to those children. They could spit at a child.

So I thought that is the most degrading life I could imagine. Of being an adult who could do that. If I was those white people the absence of that shame was so profound that the real victim was not those children. It was those women who had given up everything: their motherhood, their womanhood, their citizenship — everything, to do that nasty thing.

Now that is a true victim of history.

It’s always shocking. It’s always shocking. And I insist on being shocked.”

This certainly is how I feel. But now there’s the additional layer of people willing to support this kind of barbarism are our political leaders, our influencers including mainstream media, film makers and video game designers.

What on earth do we do?

I think we’re all asking ourselves the same question.

But what I’m curious about is how these people see themselves. With Israel as a mirror, how can they look? What do they see when they do? Is colonialism and blatant racism so deeply ingrained that this killing and destruction is unimportant to them? How can they not act?

I get that there’s the carrot of AIPAC money, and the many sticks of intimidation, but really? They can use our tax dollars to support Israel’s genocide using of Gaza?

What do they see when they know what Israel is doing, but keep supporting it anyways? It feels like they’re covering up, making excuses, saying it’s not that bad. How do they live with themselves when they see what they’re supporting?

A part of me thinks we find it hard to fathom that people will stoop to this level. We want to have confidence in the people we elect to govern. It’s so hard to accept.

But we have to get over this, and realize that some people are considered disposable by this group. And we also have to realize that if we’re not part of their group, we’re disposable too. We have to see this clearly.

We need solidarity if we’re going to change this.

We’re up against money and power, and it has shown us its horrible face.

Yes, we can keep on speaking out, boycotting, divesting, and demonstrating, and we also need to recognize the trend of more totalitarian forces trying to silence us. And keep going anyways.

Carry on, friends. We must live up to this crucial political moment together.