Saffiya Shillo – Palestine Not Remembered
By Guest Post • May 5th, 2009 at 15:02 • Category: Analysis, Culture and Heritage, Israel, Nakba and Right of Return, Newswire, Palestine, Resistance, Somoud: Arab Voices of Resistance, War, Zionism
On the anniversary of the siege of Palestine, Palestinians worldwide forget to remember what is most important when marking this and every other past and future commemoration. They forget to fight for Palestine! They forget to fight the “right” fight.” They forget to raise their voices in unison advocating the noble cause for freedom through justice. They forget what it means to be One Palestinian People.
No one can undo “the Catastrophe” or “al Nakba” that befell the Palestinian people when an organized Jewish group called Zionists decided that they wanted a homeland for Jews to call their own—even if that homeland was already a vibrant and rooted homeland to a people of deep honor and respect. No amount of “spin” or denial will ever change what happened in 1948—the truth is the Palestinians were wronged.
The Palestinians of 1948 were a simple and yet principled people. They could not accept the Jewish people’s unfair method of forcefully taking their homes, freedom and prosperity through arrogance, violence and murder. They refused to be erased or ignored. Their will to persevere could not and would not be shaken, but, alas, today their honor and respect, the very virtues that defined them elude them. The outcome of constant beat down—both physically and mentally—by one of the most brutal and abusive occupations in modern times.
The Israeli occupation of Palestine has seen people displaced and living in refugee status—sometimes twice over. Yet, they adapt to every obstacle placed in detriment to their survival. Forever waiting until justice prevails, they remain steadfast.
Israel’s occupation has and continues to kill people and destroy families. It demolishes homes and creates destruction and despair under the guise of entitlement. It is an occupation that choked the want-for-life out of otherwise viable young men and women who opted to kill themselves and other innocents espousing the violence they grew up in and unintentionally creating harm to their cause and families. They were children that grew up wanting to live; wanting freedom; wanting justice for their people. They were children that grew up without the tools or leadership to guide them to meet those goals. They left this world and their noble struggle robbed of the opportunity to understand the true concept of “give me liberty or give me death.”
The recent Israeli attack on the people of Gaza in retaliation for rockets launched by militants again saw Israelis break all international and moral codes. Israel’s unscrupulous leadership closed the borders of Gaza with willing neighbors as partners in crime. The unconscionable act of keeping people from fleeing to safety and stuck like fish in a barrel as Israeli planes dropped bombs on them and ground troops shot to kill is appalling. It left an overwhelming number of innocent people deliberately dead. In addition, it maimed, widowed and orphaned Palestinians who now find themselves alone, hungry, helpless and hopeless. And yet, the people of Gaza continue to be held captive without food, water, or access to medical care as was the case for years preceding Israel’s noxious operation and unilateral evacuation. The complacency of the world, void of absolute indignation and action, is inconceivable as the calendar pronounces 2009.
Occupation never ended in Gaza or anywhere else in the Palestinian territories. Palestinians have been denied fundamental necessities required to govern and live with the most basic of human rights.
It is time to remember that Palestinians are victims in this situation. Palestinians have suffered immeasurably. This is a conflict about land and can be solved. It is between the Palestinians and the Israelis. This conflict is about what the State of Israel has done to the Palestinian people for land. It is not about how Arab countries treated Jews in past, present or future. It is not about anti-Semitism. It should not negate the Zionist movement, based on the need for Jews to have a homeland of their own. A right people deserve, but not one that mandates the denial and demise of another people—the Palestinian people.
The Holocaust perpetrated on innocent Jews and often referred to in manifestation and parallel to this conflict should provide the moral compass deterring deviations from the notion of “never again” no matter who the aggrieved.
Palestinian suffering at the hands of Israel continues and, unfortunately, those hands have been aided by the hands of Palestinians themselves. This is what needs to be reflected on. The leaders and martyrs alike mean nothing when the people and land they gave their lives for cannot stand together. Their loss means nothing. Palestine will remain lost when their very own forget that they are all brothers and sisters whether Fattah or Hamas; Muslim or Christian, or any other ideology, faction or collection of groups.
The sanctity of the Holy Land should help guide the end to this conflict. It should touch the heart and soul of spiritual people everywhere. How can Israel strive to make the Holy Land a Jewish-only state, with Jewish only roads and areas? That racism will keep all of the children of Abraham forever apart. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all come together in Jerusalem—a marker to all that seek its control. Sole religious claim to Jerusalem covers-up, whether knowingly or not, the plight of the Palestinians and subsequently the ability to bring about resolution through justice due them.
The fact that Palestinians are more divided today than united on the ground in Palestine and worldwide speaks to the profound loss of virtues that once defined the most noble of noble people in the Middle East.
Sadly, on yet another commemoration of Al Nakba, the Palestinians have forgotten what it means to be Palestinian.
Saffiya Shillo is a Palestinian American peace activist based in Chicago. She co-developed a dual narrative program with Deputy Director Aliza Becker that they have given in many Chicago-area synagogues. Saffiya is a board member of the Palestinian American Women's Society and previously served as president of the Palestinian American Congress-Chicago chapter and as president of Arab American Family Services. She presently works as a sexual assault crises counselor and bully prevention trainer. Shillo previously worked as Director of Ethnic Affairs for the State of Illinois' Office of Lieutenant Governor and Director of the Arab American Institute's Chicago office. She is also a syndicated columnist for the Arab Writers Group http://arabwritersgroup.wordpress.com/
Guest Post is the author as indicated in the tagline. He/she (or the source that is indicated within the post) reserves the rights to the material published.
Email this author | All posts by Guest Post
Who Are the Terrorists?
People of Israel, you claim that your religion holds life in the highest esteem, yet everyday your soldiers kill the children of Palestine.
Daily, their young bodies, draped in the Red, White, Black and Green flags of their beloved homeland, are paraded down the main streets of Palestine, carried aloft in a Hero's Farewell, to their final resting place.
Each day another Palestinian mother weeps as her child is buried in sacred soil, shot down in the most horrific manner.
You call the Palestinian's terrorists, while you kill a woman who is nine months pregnant, with an American made Hellfire rocket, fired from an American made Appache helicopter, as she is taking her children home from school.
Each evening, your gigantic, armored Civil Administration, Caterpiller D-9 bulldozers arrive around 2:30 a.m. in the middle of the night and proceed to demolish Palestinian homes, destroying their olive and lemon trees, and other precious Middle Eastern commodities, such as water supplies.
No warning is given to these people that their homes are about to be destroyed. Many people have been buried alive by these American made Caterpillar bulldozers! Fathers have to quickly gather their families and run for their very lives in Terror!
You use informers to find out the location where two important Palestinian leaders are about to be meeting, then you send your helicopters to such location, and then, in what seems like something out of a Hollywood movie, it hovers directly outside the window where these leaders have gathered with their families. It fires its American made Hellfire rocket directly into the meeting room, vaporizing everyone, including the women and children! Is this not Terror?
Since its founding, Israel has started every war in which she has fought against her Arab neighbors, each victory greatly enlarging the size of your nation.
Your government has shown complete disregard as to the opinion's of the rest of the nations of the world, regarding her actions.
Who are the Terrorists?
James F. Harrington 2002
james harrington,
bravo. i could not have written it better.
[...] source [...]
Every house ,every single man and women ,all over the United States Of America must ask the
USA Administration these question : Why i am an enemy for the Palestinian People who struggling
for his freedom and independence ? Is it from my Values and ethics? Is it our Heritage ?
Why i have to pay three billion US$ annualy for Israeli militery researches for killing?
Why Israeli Army used all The USA militery killing machines against the disarmed Palestinian people ?
For how long we have to use the VITO MORE THAN 78 TIMES in favour of r Israel to cover it's murders and crimes aginst humanity ?
Thank you ,do we start visiting every house in the USA ?
@Mahmoud – OK Thanks
Every house ,every single man and women ,all over the United States Of America must ask the
USA Administration these questions : Why i am an enemy for the Palestinian People who struggling
for his freedom and independence ? Is it from my Values and ethics? Is it our Heritage ?
Why i have to pay three billion US$ annualy for Israeli militery researches for killing?
Why Israeli Army used all The USA militery killing machines against the disarmed Palestinian people ?
For how long we have to use the VITO more than78 times in favour of Israel to cover it's murders and crimes against humanity ?
Thank you ,do we start visiting every house in the USA ?
I dont completly agree with this article. We cant blame the Palestinian people for what Mahmod Abbas and his gangs that have been US trained and funded do. They are the ones doing the division. They are illegally controlling the Westbank after the people voted in Hamas. Like the true non-democratic dictators fatah is, they wouldnt accept the democratic results of the people yet they are the ones who are seen as the "moderates" in the west. A bunch of thieves and criminals handpicked by the zionists to do the work of zionism in the Palestinian occupied terrotories of 1967 are seen as the moderates. Dont blame the Palestinians for it as this is what every occupied people go thrue, the enemy choose the criminals/puppets to do the leading. During nazism there were jews helping nazism. When Germany occupied France there were french people aiding Germany against the french resistence. This is something unavoidable when one party is weak and the other is strong. The strong party (zionism in this case) will use its power to supress and divide the weak in every way possible. Nobody in Palestine likes Mahmod Abbas and the PA led by him with the exeption with possibly family members of those who are in the abbas-led PA. Everywhere i hear the Palestinians speak about this division in a bad way so i doubt there are any who support it exept those resposible for it (Abbas, Dahlan and their likes). The right of return is on the tounge of every Palestinian (again with the exeption of Abbas, Dahlan and their thugs).
And by the way, add to the list of traitors not only Abbas, Dahlan and their thugs but also the majority of Druze in 1948 territories of Palestine and unfortunatly way to many bedouins also located there. Palestinians living in 1948 borders of Palestine should insist on their palestinianess and refuse to be called israeli arabs and not fall for the zionist tricks to seperate the druze and bedouins from the regular Muslim and Christian Palestinian, the druze in israel should reject this division and stop being puppets to zionism. Studies show that 75 percent of the "Arabs" in occupied Palestine of 1948 (israel) still consider themselves Palestinian but still they need to raise their Palestinianess more and not fear the zionist rulers of their land. They must raise the Palestinian flag outside their balconys and events and insist on being called Palestinian, That is the only way to stop zionists from using the likes of Mira for their purposes.