From the River to The Sea
Palestine will be free.
You have not heard from me lately because I don’t currently see the point in going on about stupid TV shows (or good TV shows) when there is a genocide happening.
Although this is not a Political Newsletter but a Pop Culture Newsletter, that does not mean it is apolitical; nothing is. My point of view is informed by my politics. I hope that has already been clear to everybody who reads this. Many of you know, or should know by now, that I am a PhD Candidate in Feminist & Gender Studies at the University of Ottawa. This means that I am committed to a specific set of politics and I want to make that very clear before returning to any regularly scheduled programming.
As a feminist student and scholar, I follow in the footsteps of a long history of feminist activists and thinkers who condemn the Israeli occupation of Palestine, particularly Black feminists and abolitionists.1 Feminist and gender studies are rooted in (or should be rooted in) an interest in dismantling all structures of oppression which are upheld through—and build upon— Western imperialism, white supremacy, and colonization. As such, I fundamentally condemn the existence of Israel’s apartheid regime and stand firm in my position that Palestine must be free. As as graduate student, I read and teach the words of anti-colonial and anti-racist theorists, and it is important that I commit to the praxis of those theories.
To call Israel’s actions over the last 25 days anything other than genocide is cowardly and disingenuous. Israel’s own Defence Minister has described Palestinians as “human animals” and has called for the total siege of Gaza (a siege which Israel also direct towards the West Bank—there is no safe space in Palestine; and Israel launched strikes at Syria and Lebanon). I am appalled at the way that Israel’s actions have been downplayed by Western governments, including our own. As Angela Davis has written, “the important issues in the Palestinian struggle for freedom and self-determination are minimized and rendered invisible by those who try to equate Palestinian resistance to Israeli apartheid with terrorism”.2 Western media is complicit in the framing of resistance as inciting terror. Blatant misinformation and disinformation have been spread not only by news media, but by the President of the United States. Such propaganda is a fundamental part of the wheels of genocide, and I am appalled at the ways that governments and news media have contributed to fear mongering rooted in islamophobia. So far the result has only been more violence against Muslim folks globally, including the murder of 6-year-old Wadea Al-Fayoume, the stabbing of Dr. Talat Jehan Khan, as well as the assault of numerous others around the world. While much of our news is Americanized, please remember that the Canadian government has been complicit in Israel’s genocide. Not only through financial means, but through action and inaction3, such as abstaining from the UN vote for a humanitarian truce—ironic for a country that prides itself on its historical role in Peacekeeping—and the Ontario NDP censure of MPP Sarah Jama for merely acknowledging the colonial violence of Israel. We are seeing once again, in real time, how the West manufactures consent for imperial violence.
I am in awe of the leadership and strength of The Palestinian Youth Movement, which has organized rallies across the globe, including Ottawa, and continues to be brave in the face of rampant misinformation and islamophobia. Young people deserve to live full, beautiful lives; we must demand a better world for them. We must demand a world where Palestinian children are able to grow up. We must demand a future. I condemn violence against our Muslim community members and I urge my fellow graduate students, scholars, and community members to pay attention to the rise of islamophobia in Canada. I abhor the ways that racism, islamophobia, and xenophobia are consistently used to demonize Black and brown people around the globe. Canada has a history of, and continued participation in, this type of violence. It is fundamental to the manufacturing of consent. I urge us all to support our local communities and ensure that those of us with the privilege of safety are mobilizing it in meaningful ways. Our Muslim comrades deserve care and protection.
I reject the premise that to be against Israeli apartheid is to be anti-Semitic and I stand with my feminist Jewish comrades who have disavowed this Zionist occupation while navigating their own grief and anger at the way that such grief has been used as justification for genocide. There is a long history of anti-Zionist Jewish and Israeli activism and their work is vital to the freedom movement. This has been shown again and again over the past month; Jewish comrades have been assaulted and arrested for speaking out against genocide. I do not stand for anti-Semitism or violence against our Jewish comrades. Zionism is not Judaism.
As we now watch politicians turn the tide and attempt to walk back the statements that they have already made, we must never forget the ways that Canada and other Western nation states have been complicit in this genocide. There is a profound and disturbing irony in the fact that governments which claim to believe in the United Nations and International Law have made no attempts to hold Israel accountable for the violations of said laws—which include the bombing of hospitals, UN shelters, refugee camps, and the use of white phosphorous gas for the sole purpose of causing injury and death. We must continue to put pressure on our governments to hold Israel accountable for this genocide and the decades of occupation it has inflicted upon the people of Palestine.
I would be remiss if I did not address the ways that celebrities have shown their true colours, as they always do (it is a mistake to assume that the wealthiest among us will ever do anything but support the colonizer, the capitalist, the empire). Folks like Amy Schumer, Sarah Silverman (who, to be clear, has previously done Black Face), and noted Zionist Gal Gadot, have spread blatant misinformation and propaganda that directly contributes to the slaughtering of Palestinians. Actor Brett Gelman has posted a series of bizarre and disgusting tirades against pro-Palestinian supporters. Michael Rapaport has been unleashing disgusting Zionist content on Twitter and offering a reward if people can identifying two young women who (rightfully!!!) ripped down some Israeli propaganda posters in New York. The “Creative Community For Peace” released an open letter signed by 2000+ actors, writers, producers, Hollywood execs, etc. that supports Israel’s so-called “right to defend itself”. Signatories include Gal Gadot and Amy Schumer (of course), Jamie Lee Curtis, Mark Hamill, Michael Douglas, Stephen Fry, Antoine Fuqua, Jenji Kohan, Ricki Lake, Zachary Levi, George Lopez, Debra Messing, Alfred Molina, Josh Peck, Chris Pine, Jeremy Piven, Eli Roth, Ben and Fred Savage, Liev Schreiber, Jerry Seinfeld, Iliza Shlesinger, Bella Thorne, Zosia Mamet, and many, many, many more. Keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive list of every act of celebrity Zionism and anti-Palestinian rhetoric. Let us never mistake fame for intelligence.
Hollywood is built on the same foundations of colonialism, white supremacy, and empire, that any other multi-million dollar industry is; it is a place where predators flourish. It is dangerous and shortsighted to pretend that what these people say and do does not matter, or that they are only actors/performers/what-have-you and therefore should not have to speak on politics. Indeed, nobody asked them to speak. I cannot recall why I would ever want to hear Amy Schumer’s thoughts on anything. But the fact remains that these people hold much power and influence over their audiences. What they say and do has an impact. We have seen how Hollywood takes up causes half-heartedly, how they pay lip service and then nothing changes behind the scenes. Much of that, as the CCP letter shows, is because of the insidiousness of these ideas and who holds them. As much as I may love a movie or TV show or the people behind it, I know that they are not people I know, and I know better than to “stan” anybody. But many people do not; the culture of celebrity has become so blurred in our modern times that people think following that their favourite star on instagram means they know them. This has many negative effects, but the ways that these celebrities mobilize their own platforms (especially on social media websites that, as I said, contribute to a sort of faux-intimacy) to support genocide and white supremacy, is the most egregious. I urge you to put your consumer power to use and think about these things when you are choosing what movie or show to watch.
As a person and as a feminist graduate student, I believe in the abolition of prisons, borders, and the nation-state. If you have, at any point, claimed to be for the abolition of these things, then you must condemn the apartheid state of Israel. Do not let anybody convince you that this is “complicated”. Please, do your research, ask people you trust for resources. Do not let the wheels of propaganda turn in your mind. Call and email your representatives (MP and MPP emails in Canada are very easy to find), attend protests, participate in BDS, donate where it is possible.
Please remember how important it is that we use the right words. Those words are: genocide and ethnic cleansing. Israeli apartheid must end.
Palestine must be free. From the river to the sea.4
