Knowledge Is Power
I would like to say first and foremost that I am not Palestinian nor am I Israeli, but I am a person who feels strongly that knowledge equals power. There is nothing in this world that I believe holds more power than knowledge. Now I could go on and on about the long-standing history of this debate, but the fact is I’m still trying to learn about the tumultuous history that is this conflict and the more I learn the more enraged I feel as anyone should to the horrors occurring. I feel extremely privileged to live in a place where I don’t have to worry about my family's safety. I think it is also prudent to acknowledge that with this privilege there should be discussions about the underprivileged.
What I have learned is when one side has international support with immeasurable power it is easy to create a narrative. When one side has had a military that has been funded by other countries it is easy to change the narrative. When one group has never had the support of countries with strong militaries it is easy to change the narrative. We are in the age of technology where we can get information 24/7. It is also easy to change the narrative to side with the oppressed more than ever.
The Palestinians are dying—this is fact—and the majority of their deaths have been, according to the United Nations, “Women and children have made up more than 62 percent of the fatalities.” I have watched violent videos over the past month full of content I never imagined I would have to see from a tiny screen. I have watched countless lives be eradicated and all for the sake of what? Nationalism and economic gain. I have watched a journalist named Bisan Owda start off her videos with “I am still alive” every day as she watched her home be destroyed and have to seek refuge. I have seen videos of children in Gaza being asked what they wish to be when they grow up only to answer that kids in Gaza don’t grow up.
I have learned what the chemical white phosphorus does to people when used. White phosphorus burns people to the bone and is being used right now by the Israeli government to eradicate a side. The Human Rights Watch has video recordings “showing multiple airbursts of artillery-fired white phosphorus over the Gaza City port and two rural locations along the Israel-Lebanon border….” When civilians are being killed for the actions of one group it is called collective punishment. As a human being, I cannot sit idly while these people are writing letters in hopes that people will remember them.
I don’t think if this was about the hostages they would not be bombing places where they believe they are being held. If this was about the hostages the IDF would not be bombing Lebanon and Egypt. I don’t think if this wasn’t an ethnic cleansing the IDF would not have told Palestinians to head for the south only to be bombed. Palestinians are not all Muslims as well and I need people to understand that there are Muslims, Christians, and Jewish people.
Nelson Mandela, the former president of South Africa, fought against the right to an apartheid state. He was placed in prison for 27 years for fighting against this. Why is the narrative different when it comes to the Palestinians? One group of people can cut off another's water, food, and electricity and still paint themselves as the victim.
Knowledge is power, and if there is anything that I think you should take from this article it is to not live in ignorance but to go and search for answers; don’t sit idly while real events are occurring in the world. My experience with knowledge was mine alone and I will not forget the children. I will not forget the mothers holding their dead children. This is not war and let that be heard. This is a genocide.
Sources:
“Israel-Palestine: Gaza Death Toll Passes 5,000 With No Ceasefire in Sight.” UN News, 24 Oct. 2023,
news.un.org/en/story/2023/10/1142687.
“Israel-Hamas War 2023: What You Need to Know.” AJC, 14 Nov. 2023, www.ajc.org/IsraelHamasWar.
“Israel: White Phosphorus Used in Gaza, Lebanon.” Human Rights Watch, 13 Oct. 2023,
www.hrw.org/news/2023/10/12/israel-white-phosphorus-used-gaza-lebanon.
“Palestine | History, People, Conflict, and Religion.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 Nov. 2023,
www.britannica.com/place/Palestine/World-War-I-and-after .