i gave a disclaimer in the beginning of my last post, but i want to explain the last article i posted in more depth. i never give analysis to my own work and explain why i wrote what i wrote unless directly questioned about it. one of my goals is to take you through my thought process and hope it resonates and sparks your own thinking. once i post a piece, it is now the internet’s for interpretation. i am merely the vessel who wrote it. while every article usually has a personal example, this one does not because it truly is not about me. that is one of the major points of the article: not every issue is about you, but how you react to issues that do not directly involve you shows where your morals lie. can you prioritize other people’s suffering even if it does not benefit you?
however, this piece is so different than what i’ve written in the past. this is post has implications beyond myself or a cultural phenomenon. i think this past piece is by far the most sensitive, as it deals with issues that are life and death. given the context, i tried to treat it with the utmost respect, which i hope was properly displayed.
there was so much i wanted to say, but i did not want to make this an extremely long piece because part of accessibility is realizing not everyone has the time to sit down and read a 20-page paper, so, i’ve condensed my thoughts as much as I possibly could.
because of this, i feel as though there must be a follow-up dialogue. i want to make it abundantly clear that i do not condone violence against civilians, in any capacity.
i stated in my disclaimer that i do not give a history lesson as my main focus is to comment on the social reaction to international conflict, not the conflict itself. i think it is important to see how people respond to these issues and examine how society frames these topics.
people make it their life’s work to dissect the Israeli occupation of Palestine and analyze Zionism in great depth, and to be 100% honest, my platform is not an academic platform to quote and use as a source for international issues. i only talk about how society, mainly Western society, reacts to said issues. i should not be the person who you are getting historical information from. it is not my place nor is it in my field of knowledge to educate people on an issue i am not completely educated on.
another one of my goals whenever i write for annoyingly cynical is to provide a framework to view issues through. the occupation of Palestine by Israel is not complex when you center your view on the protection of human rights. there is a clear aggressor and violator through this view of the occupation. i use analysis of our relation to social media and how it perpetuates our lack of critical thinking to display how our reactions to social issues can cause more harm than good.
i also choose my words very carefully throughout this piece as well. I specify that it is the Israeli Government and the Hamas, not the people who happen to live under those regimes. the actions of institutions should be examined.
i emphasize using this framework because it centers on humanity. because as Americans, this is a situation we have little control over. The most we can and should do is urge the U.S. federal government to stop supplying the Israeli government with tools to commit war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and further displacement of Palestinians. this is a HUGE task, but this is the most tangible way to not support the Israeli government and what it is doing.
contact your local representatives and urge them to fight against the aid packages the U.S. government wants to send the Israeli Government to continue the war. luckily for us, the U.S. House of Representatives is in absolute shambles, looking for a Speaker of the House, therefore we cannot pass spending bills. we have time to protest our government and do our part to limit genocide.
if you are in the position to give, here is a link to resources where you can contribute:
https://fmep.org/resource/ways-to-support-palestinians-in-the-gaza-strip/
if you are looking for information/education, there are countless resources to educate yourself with. most people research to confirm their beliefs, not to gain a full scope of what is happening. i urge you all to interact with those whom you might not align with to see how you can strengthen your own arguments or change your perception of what is happening.
with all of that being said:
Free Palestine.