Martin Luther King, Jr., Gandhi, Reverend James Lawson, and others used carefully planned strategies of nonviolent resistance in order to bring peace to societies fueled by the flames of hatred. In the times I have listened to Reverend James Lawson, leader of the Nashville sit-ins during 1960 and a man MLK referred to as the greatest leader of the nonviolence in the world at the time, he has continually emphasized that nonviolence must be deliberately and meticulously organized. For nonviolence to really be effective, he says, it must be structured. While I agree with this analysis in terms of nonviolent protests and movements created to capture the attention of the media and the national/international community, I have come to realize that structured resistance is not the only acceptable form of nonviolence. The Palestinians, though they do carefully organize weekly protests against the Israeli occupation – most commonly against the settlements and Separation Wall (or security fence as the Israeli government refers to it), the Palestinians also resist through another way: life.
In order to understand the Palestinian mentality, we must first understand a little of their past. The Palestinians have long lived under occupation. Over the last thousand years, for example, many empires and civilizations have claimed the land: the armies of Sala’adin, the Ottomans, the British, the Kingdom of Jordan, and now Israel, to name a few. In what Israel refers to as the War of Independence in 1948, Jordan invaded from the east and occupied the West Bank, later annexing it. Jordan held this area until the Six-Day War of 1967 when Israel captured it. The West Bank had been “given” to the Palestinians as the space for their homeland by the United Nations, and the border between it and Israel has been named the Green Line. But after the 1967 occupation, Israel immediately began the construction of Jewish settlements (“colonies” to many Palestinians and “communities” to many Jews). For many, if not most, Palestinians, these settlements are the number one obstacle to peace in the area. In 2000, Israeli leader Ariel Sharon marched a large number of police troops to Islam’s third holiest site, the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which sits on the Temple Mount. This gesture of Israeli power sparked the Second Intifada, during which Israel began construction of the aforementioned Wall. Though the Green Line itself only runs approximately 350km, the length of the Wall, when completed, is estimated to stretch over 750km. The Wall is another huge obstacle to peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
Instead of buckling under the current oppression, however, they resist it by simply continuing to live. Though life is not easy and mobilization severely threatened by Israeli policy in the West Bank, the Palestinians here continue on with their life routines. Daily I walk by homes and see the elderly men out drinking tea and coffee together, playing backgammon, or engaged in conversation. Kids run down the streets kicking soccer balls and riding bikes. At Osh Grahb, the park of Beit Sahour, Palestinian children and adults come to attempt Paidia’s climbing wall, filling the air with laughter and shouts of “Etla, etla!” At times at the AIC, Palestinians come together to celebrate local music. And most recently, families gather every evening at Osh Grahb to eat, drink, and smoke nargileh while watching the excitement of the World Cup as it is projected on a wall in front. Some even gather at a new place near the Separation Wall in Bethlehem where the beams of light from the projector fall upon the Wall itself, transforming a symbol of oppression into a symbol of community.
These people have decided that though Israel can deny them mobility, convenience, water – in short, freedom – Israel can never deny them their ability to celebrate life. In the face of occupation and oppression, the Palestinians still celebrate. They celebrate through their laughter and their living. They celebrate through embracing community. They celebrate by investing in each other’s lives. Unlike many in the United States, Palestinians do not live isolated from each other. They live intentionally engaged with those around them. Their resolve is in-spiring, breathing new life into me.
These are a peaceful people, worn down with injustice, but learning to stand despite their suffering. Israel can continue to build settlements. It can continue construction on the Wall. It can continue harassment of people at checkpoints. In short, it can perpetuate the oppression. But still music will sound from the other side of the Wall. Old men will still drink coffee and tell stories. Children will still kick soccer balls. Mothers will still raise their children. And people will still gather to watch the World Cup.
Michael
By living with them, you share in their resistance. You are doing so thoughtfully and respectfully. Well done.
ReplyDeleteYour dad is right. We cannot fully understand resistance unless we have experienced oppression ourselves, but when you see the people you care for and love being oppressed, you also share in part of their oppression.
ReplyDeleteAlexa