I am a Palestinian-American whose parents sought safety and security in the U.S. in the 1950s. Were they alive today, we would share in the embarrassment of United States’ support of Israel’s indiscriminate slaughtering of over 25,000 Gazans thus far, its razing of neighborhoods in Gaza, and its Wild West-style killings in the West Bank by settlers (“Biden sanctions Israeli settlers accused of attacking Palestinians and peace activists in West Bank,” Feb. 1). Though I would never vote for Donald J. Trump, this election may become the first in which I do not vote for a Democrat for president.
In a country where the murder of as few as five Americans sparks national uproar, 25,000 deaths in Gaza seems to hold less value in the eyes of this administration. I wonder how many have to be murdered for the U.S. to say “Enough!” Thirty thousand? Fifty thousand?
Even before Oct. 7, because of a decades-long Gazan blockade, occupation and siege by the government of Israel, unemployment in Gaza was 48% and basic food resources and health services were restricted. Palestinians have been oppressed, isolated and traumatized in a war that Israel has long been waging before this latest declaration.
By continuing to allow Israel free reign, the U.S. is now complicit in a war crime and attempted genocide. Our paralysis on Gaza has created a worldwide instability that includes Houthi rebels bombing tankers in the Persian Gulf, a Hezbollah that is increasing its incursions into Northern Israel, and a perceived wave of antisemitism (which often simply targets the Israeli government). Despite a worldwide powder keg that seems to continue to grow, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s authoritarian regime continues the bloodshed unchecked with no articulated end game.
I’m angered over Hamas’s Oct. 7 atrocities. But any fair-minded person would temper it with the previous and current physical, humanitarian and political atrocities that the Palestinians have endured for generations. I support Israeli and Palestinian people alike. I do not support their power brokers. I think waving the Palestinian flag is as relevant as waving the Israeli flag. Or the Ukrainian flag. They all have a right to exist.
Israel’s apartheid against Palestinians has Gazans bombed, starving, suffocating and desperate. And until this is openly acknowledged and acted on, there will be no path forward. In the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela, I long for future administrations where Israel, the U.S. and a repositioned Hamas will bring all parties together with one purpose: peace and safety for all.
But for now, I join the hundreds of millions that demand that the U.S. call for an immediate ceasefire and act humanely enough to earmark some of the billions of dollars this country thoughtlessly hands Israel every year toward war reparations and security to a devastated Gaza.
— Farid Bishara, Baltimore
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