"A Palestinian family in Tal al-Sultan camp, west of Rafah, decorates its tent in preparation for the month of Ramadan in order to preserve Ramadan customs and bring joy and happiness to the children to alleviate the effects of war." from Belal Khaled, 02/Mar/2024:
Palestine is not over. Palestine is not dead. Gaza, the West Bank, the entire region between the river and the sea, and the various countries across the world where refugees have fled to, house a surviving people and surviving culture. Palestine is not dead, and WILL NOT die.
I'm seeing a lot of very valid despair online, but if you're someone like me, living a privileged life in a Western country NOT under active bombardment, and which is actually COMPLICIT to some degree in that bombardment: we don't get to give up. Not now, not ever.
You can still get involved in protests or direct actions (e.g. blocking supply), you can still donate eSims or fund UNRWA on your government's behalf, you can still hassle the crap out of your local MP. No, it won't roll back the harm that's already been committed, but all of those things are STILL WORTH DOING. PEOPLE ARE STILL ALIVE OVER THERE. PALESTINE IS STILL WORTH SAVING.
If you've bothered to read this far, you're probably already aware of what's going on over there right now. If not, check out Al Jazeera's fantastic coverage. But also remember that Palestine, and Palestinian culture, is more than just death and despair. Examples below:
"The prime ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand have issued a joint statement saying a
"humanitarian ceasefire is urgently needed" in Gaza and that they are "gravely concerned" about looming Israeli military operations in Rafah.
"A military operation into Rafah would be catastrophic.
About 1.5 million Palestinians are taking refuge in the area, including many of our citizens and their families," the statement reads.
"With the humanitarian situation in Gaza already dire, the impacts on Palestinian civilians from an expanded military operation would be devastating. We urge the Israeli government not to go down this path."
The statement - cosigned by Prime Ministers Anthony Albanese, Justin Trudeau and Christopher Luxon - also said that Israel "must listen to its friends and it must listen to the international community" and that Palestinian civilians can't be made to "pay the price of defeating Hamas""
This is so beautiful. Such unshakable faith can never be destroyed.
A stunning act of faith, resilience, solidarity, and humanity. As Palestinians perform Friday prayers near the ruins of a mosque destroyed in Israeli strikes, in #Rafah in the southern #Gaza Strip. March 1, 2024." from Dr Jennifer Cassidy
I don't share politics on this blog but... I just saw a video that will forever be burned into my brain and I just can't...
An US soldier set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy for Palestine. He went up in front of the gate and said "I will no longer be complicit in genocide. I am about to engage in an extreme act of protest, but compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers, it's not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal." He put the camera down, poured gas over himself, and set himself on fire. And then he channeled all the unimaginable pain into screaming "Free Palestine" multiple times before he collapsed.
Then some people rushed to him with a fire extinguisher and some super helpful cop also entered the scene to POINT A GUN at the guy on the ground, who was by that point already completely engulfed in flames. He kept pointed his gun at him!
I've never seen anything so utterly surreal in my life. It was gut wrenching to watch it. His name was Aaron Bushnell, 25. I can't imagine the strength it took to keep standing and screaming "Free Palestine" while burning alive. He died later in the hospital.
And of course, the mainstream media treats it casually which is NOT OKAY. That guy was almost my age. It's soul crushing.
I see so many comments on my Palestine posts by Zionists saying "Hamas are terrorists" "They raped children" "They did this" "They did that" and I just want to let them know:
We're done playing this game.
This game where Zionists come up with whatever lies they want and we have to look for ways to disprove them.
They're thieves and murders. Let's just all collectively agree to tell them to fuck off and die mad.