In This Issue: ESSAY | TAKE ACTION | NOW READ THIS | FINAL FRAME
(For an ongoing explainer on what’s happening in Israel/Palestine and why, check out Jewish Currents)
Like anyone with eyes to see and a heart to feel, I’ve been grappling with the incredible heartbreak and heaviness of recent world events and trying to figure out what to do with it—from here in my comfortable, relatively safe haven in Wisconsin.
Sitting around a crackling fire in my backyard the other night, enjoying the (finally) crisp autumn air and the company of friends, I had the sense of strangeness that always comes when I’m aware of terrible tragedy unfolding elsewhere, impacting people I largely don’t personally know, and yet funded (at least in part) by my government. Bombs are falling on Palestine, again. People, children, are dying needlessly in a seemingly never-ending and deeply lopsided war. My heart aches for everyone who has been killed, wounded, and/or traumatized by the violence—Israeli, Palestinian, everyone.
Simply put, I am pro-people. I am pro-freedom, pro-liberty, pro-pluralism. I am against apartheid, against walls, against borders, against xenophobia and intolerance and oppression in all its forms, against anyone. And I know that it is possible to be supportive of both Palestinian and Israeli people’s desire for and right to freedom and safety. It is possible to be against the settler colonialism of Israel’s government and right-wing factions, and to be staunchly opposed to anti-Semitism—because the two are not remotely the same and making accusations to the counter is frankly disingenuous and, itself, anti-Semitic (i.e. Jews, just like Muslims, are not monolithic in their thoughts or actions).
It is possible to condemn the indiscriminate violence of groups like Hamas, to mourn those killed or kidnapped on Oct. 7, to hold space for those impacted—and also recognize that such violence is just one of the sadly inevitable results of the decades of oppression enacted on the Palestinian people by the apartheid government of Israel. People will always resist their oppression, and non-violent attempts to forge a path to coexistence and peace are consistently, often violently crushed by the IDF. What could be expected?
It’s also possible—indeed, crucial—to say that the attacks of Oct. 7 do not in any way justify the genocidal reaction of the Israeli government and military, who have since flattened entire neighborhoods in Palestine, killing whole extended families, cutting off access to everything from clean water to medicine to internet.
This comes on top of the years-long blockade of Gaza that had severely limited access to crucial resources, in addition to restricting the movement of the people living there. Israel destroyed Palestine’s only airport back in the early 2000s. There are only two points of entry into and out of Gaza, one controlled by Israel, the other by Egypt. Both are currently closed, meaning that no international aid can get into Gaza. Both were tightly controlled even before recent events. Without freedom of movement, Gaza has rightly been referred to as the world’s “largest open-air prison.” A large-scale bombing campaign in such cramped quarters without viable means of escape, then, can only be seen as a genocidal project.
And yet, here comes a seemingly lockstep, bipartisan brigade of political leaders and media outlets, declaring unequivocal support for Israel and their campaign of retribution. There are precious few voices of dissent in the halls of Congress. Our own Democratic Wisconsin delegation has fallen far short of what I’d expect/want from them. Scott Gordon at Tone has an excellent and excoriating look at the situation that’s well worth reading:
All of these people have a responsibility to do better and show some political spine. Right now, full-on fascists like Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton are salivating for destruction in Gaza. Democrats who don’t push back wholeheartedly against this sort of rhetoric are abjectly failing to do their jobs as a political opposition. They are standing back and sanctioning genocide. Baldwin’s statement on Tuesday that “Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas’s horrific terrorist attacks, but more innocent people cannot pay the price,” is too little, too late, especially coming from someone who has actively enabled the IDF.
I think most Americans have a suspicion of rigid ideologies and strident, absolutist posturing. That can be healthy, until it devolves into utter fecklessness, an unwillingness to commit to specific outcomes, an absence of any coherent framework that holds when the going gets tough. What we end up with is not pragmatism freed of blinders, but a shell game. If you’re not careful, your politics become the sum of the evils you are willing to ignore and the excuses you are willing to make.
It feels very similar to the unquestioning, racist “patriotism” that was expected of Americans after 9/11. Instead of doing the admittedly difficult work of coming to grips with the history that led us to that point, of engaging in efforts at reconciliation and justice via an international judicial system, we blundered off to war. We squandered the goodwill of the world by causing the death of hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians, upending entire societies and helping give fuel to a new, more brutal wave of extremist/terrorist groups.
To quote, oddly enough, an Evangelical Christian activist by the name of Shane Claiborne:
Peacemaking doesn’t mean passivity. It is the act of interrupting injustice without mirroring injustice, the act of disarming evil without destroying the evildoer, the act of finding a third way that is neither fight nor flight but the careful, arduous pursuit of reconciliation and justice. It is about a revolution of love that is big enough to set both the oppressed and the oppressors free.
I take issue with the use of the word “evil,” because I think it’s overused in a way that oversimplifies the why/what/how of terrible acts while dehumanizing the perpetrators (and, in a way, absolving them of real accountability). But I otherwise I agree heartily with the overall sentiment.
By resorting to dehumanizing, degrading, and violent tactics in our pursuit of justice, we ourselves become the perpetrators and perpetuators of terrible acts. The bloody cycle continues. We are none of us clean.
It doesn’t have to be this way. We were supposed to hold dear to the motto of “never again” after the last great horrors. And yet we continue to either explicitly or implicitly support ethnic cleansing and genocides, just so long as it’s not against our people. So long as the impacts are to a perceived other. So long as we don’t have to make ourselves uncomfortable.
It should go without saying, and yet here we are, that the indiscriminate killing of civilians is never OK. The oppression of others is never OK. The violent removal of people from their homes is never OK. Racism and settler-colonialism are never OK. No matter how hurt and angry I am at someone, or a group of someones, for causing harm to me and mine, it is abject moral failure to advocate for their utter eradication. I will work—imperfectly but doggedly—to find a better way forward for us all, one that recognizes our shared humanity and the necessity of dreaming and building a world where we all feel safe and loved, regardless of where we live or who we are or what faith we follow or who we love.
Never again is now. Your voice and your actions in this moment matter. See below for some good options for speaking up and helping out.
I’ll leave you for the now with the words of Israel Frey, an Israeli journalist who went into hiding after his house was attacked by a mob over expressing solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza last week. He recorded a video message that was shared by his friends and colleagues and I think is well worth a watch:
Take Action.
A dear friend has organized a massive online fundraiser to directly support Palestinian medics and hospitals. They’ve rallied over a hundred incredible artists and makers to donate their wares as part of it. Go check it out and throw in what you can. We have to take care of each other, even from across the world and in seemingly impossible circumstances.
Another friend is also selling prints of the below poster print, with proceeds going to fund medical services in Palestine through the Middle East Children’s Alliance.
Jewish Voices for Peace has good resources for ways to contact your representatives and call for a ceasefire.
Now Read This.
“We Cannot Cross Until We Carry Each Other” [Arielle Angel for Jewish Currents]
We need to imagine a movement for liberation better even than the Exodus—an exodus where neither people has to leave. Where people stay to pick up the pieces, rearranging themselves not just as Jews or Palestinians but as antifascists and workers and artists.
“Dispatches From Gaza” [Mohammed Zraiy, Khalil, and Rania Hussein for Jewish Currents]
A people under occupation has only three options: To resist, to resist, and to resist.
“Israelis Are Rejecting Netanyahu. So Why Is Biden Giving Him a Blank Check?” [John Nicols for The Nation]
Biden has always been a strong supporter of Israel, and he is still that. But he needs to recognize, as do many Israelis, that it’s a bad idea for Israel and the world to give Netanyahu a blank check to do as he chooses. That’s especially true now, as Israel’s assault on Gaza enters a new and horrifying stage.
“I Get Feedback” [Lyz Lenz at Men Yell At Me]
I am not saying women are perfect. I’m saying I want to be as messily human and exist in a world where the systems that govern my personal relationships don’t structurally disadvantage me.
“What Is A Woman? (a response)” [Julia Serano at Switch Hitter]
“What is a woman?” is not intended to be a question. It’s a slogan created and championed by UK “gender critical” activists who strongly oppose the social and legal recognition of trans people, with some even calling for eliminationist measures that would morally mandate us out of existence. Whenever gender-critical activists pose the “what is a woman?” question to politicians, organizations, celebrities, etc. (as they are wont to do), they are not looking to start a nuanced discussion or debate. Rather, they want a yes-or-no answer to their real question, the only question that counts in their minds: Will you support our anti-trans beliefs, policies, and legislation?
Book Nook.
I recently finished and loved a new novel by Moniquill Blackgoose called “To Shape A Dragon’s Breath.” It’s the first in what promises to be an excellent series, the best way I can describe as being indigenous fantasy/steampunk with dragons.
Final Frame.
Autumn is a truly magical time of year in Wisconsin. Even our dogs think so. We recently took them for a walk out at Donald County Park, one of my absolute favorite places in Dane County, to take in the sights, sounds, and smells of fall along the creek.
‘Til next time.
Thanks for reading and for standing up for your friends and neighbors! Take care of each other out there.
Always feel free to hit me up with questions, comments, suggestions, and tips on great hiking spots or good books. And please feel free to forward this email to a friend and/or hit that subscribe button. xoxo