A quick Preface

It is a kind of misnomer to declare that the United States for only 70 days has had to reckon with their established and unabashed support for the ethnic cleansing of Palestine at the hands of Israel; the United States has neither faced any repercussions nor made sweeping policy decisions securing any semblance of freedom or peace. It is also true that this policy of ethnic cleansing is not new or unique in any way, barring from a quantitative enlarging, and instead is a product of over a century of anti-social settler politics bolstered by decades of relatively unwavering support by Western imperialist powers. It is pure revisionism to omit the historical foundations that led up to the October 7th attacks. 

It had been especially demanding to write anything on the Palestinian struggle for me because I simply have no frame of reference I can use to imagine the hell they are being put through. The violence of it is not likely to be felt by most Americans, most of whom have not encountered a Hellfire R9x missile.

 I don’t have a direct connection to Palestine or Israel, and I certainly cannot claim to be an expert on the topic. I have written on the topic many times before, yet each time I research I find new knowledge and form new perspectives. The proliferation of new perspectives and concepts should be the focus of people not used to taking any action. Adding to the general discourse, even when it seems so useless, is ultimately necessary to attempt to change something for the better. If you are sickened by the media coverage of blatant genocide or the rise of weaponized accusations of anti-semitism, disturbed by truly anti-semitic rightwing rhetoric, you should advance rather than retreat. The ramifications are just now truly being unveiled and give a transient glimpse into the future. 

The irony is not lost on someone who has been relatively silent for 70 days watching the war from a screen. I previously was part of a more silent crowd. While my beliefs toward Palestine and Israel are the same as before October 7th and the ensuing period, the discourse had changed in such a way as to discourage written denunciations from me. Whatever could have been said was better articulated by those with more experience than me. I also did not want to write but rather take to the streets and build solidarity with those who felt the same. I felt like I would most certainly be part of the problem rather than the solution if I did not do something.

I have been working on a couple of articles I intend to finish early next year, along with a series on aspects of the Israeli occupation and Palestinian resistance. Tying together the multitude of narratives, creating a coherent vision of the past that can illustrate the charges of genocide levied against the state of Israel, is something I can do in my own words. Perhaps I cannot give the deepest of analysis or the most cutting-edge research, but I may be able to resonate with someone through my own words, inspiring them to make their own voice heard and amplified by comrades.