Over the course of this past year, 5784, I've been more outspoken about Palestinian freedom than ever before. As someone who grew up modern orthodox and was indoctrinated into all the stories about Israel, all the way up to and including attending Birthright in 2005, I had a long journey in my activism to face zionism head on. Despite many role model elder holocaust surviving, political prisoner advocating, jewish mentors, I was reticent to face the conversation. Mostly because it felt so big and beyond my power and capacity even as an organizer. I think I felt more able to abolish the prison system than I did to divest from Israel as it has continued to break international law. I would hide when friends would invite me to march with them in 2017 and even before that.
So what made this year different than all other years? Besides from now being a professional Jew and working within a specifically Jewish context where I have become an leading voice on the way claims and the fear of antisemitism is manipulated to justify war crimes... and now a genocide. The way the genocide has become the most brutal in all these years, the everyday horrors stream through my phone.
They say that the television had a huge impact on wars because once people were able to see real footage of what was happening they were a lot more apt to oppose the horrors and violence. I think there is something about the speed of communication via tiktok specifically and social media more broadly that has increased the sensitivity of us to the horrors of this particularly genocide. The pleas for help come at such a low bar.... to pause sending military aid, to force through humanitarian relief, to allow the escape of thousands and millions of innocent civilians. Yet from the most simple requests, to the highest courts there is no amount of moral truth that has been able to halt the steam engine of the colonizing forces of the west.
During these Days of Awe, I asked myself what might the end be. What will it look like? This is a question I sit with that has been given to me by my Black Ethiopian Israeli comrades. They asked me to continue fighting and also to join them in dreaming of what the future might be of a world where there is equality from the river to the sea and human rights and dignity are a given for every single life. Where water is accessible and speaking out against your government's policies do not mean being beaten up or jailed.
So I joined siblings for Yizkor, click this link to watch.
I remember, I refuse, I recommit.
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