All of the internationals, sat the night before talking about going, how to get their, and who was and was not planning on going. From that conversation came discussions on why we, as internationals should or should not attend these. "Should" is not a word I like to use often, first because I really do not enjoy being told what to do, and second because that implies that outside forces can dictate your decisions.
Here, in Palestine, that is exactly the issue. Outside forces dictate just about everything you can and cannot do, leaving little room for agency or opportunity. That is the reason for demonstrations like the one that I attended.
Press, that have been coming ever week from Palestinian papers and News Channels.
It is hard to live here, each step and each part of your day seems to be affected by the occupation. What you can buy, what you can sell, where you can and cannot go. Practicing Islam or religion in general seems to be one of the only free options, and that at time due to restriction of movement, can be a challenge.
Think about basic human rights, think about your family, your home, being parts of your life that could easily be taken away from you.
On the left, the organizer of the demonstration waving the Palestinian flag, and right a youth with his 'weapon' in hand.
The place that I went to, is called Kafr Qaddum. I went with a few other internationals, enough to fill a taxi. It took 30 minutes to get from Nablus to Kafr Qaddum, that is the main reason for this demonstration. The people have taken one concrete example of the occupation and focused on it, that example is the closure of the main road from Kafr Qaddum to Nablus. From the Village to the city where goods are sold and bought, and it is closed because of the near by new Jewish settlement that was built. The safety of the settlers is a concern to the Israeli Army so they have maintained the road closure. This meant that the Taxi we took to the village took 30 minutes instead of 7 minutes.
The leader of the protest mentioned that during the Intifada, it made sense for the road to be closed, but that since the end of the intifada in 2008, the negotiations to re-open the road have all been held together with empty promises and that the road closure has become a reminder, and an instrument of oppression. A reminder that the Palestinians lack control, and that the Israeli's plan to make it considerably easier to live somewhere else rather than here.
Regardless of the clarity that it would be easier to live somewhere else, the people stay, and they persist with hopes and dreams of bright futures. As we arrived people greeted us with the usual welcome, asking where we were from and why we came.
I realized that we had a role as internationals and that the roll is to spread the word. These demonstrations are frustratingly ineffective, and that is because no one is watching. That is because no one outside is recognizing the abuses that are happening here, specifically people in the US. I felt out of place, as a women and as an American, still I feel that it was very important to have attended and observed this, hopefully it will bring me a step closer to being a better educator.
When a tear gas does not explode, they set it off and try to fling it back towards the soldiers
As we walked from the center of the town to the road which is closed, I realized that two women attended other than me, and they were the other internationals. All of the women in the village stay at home, and in the west we might see that is oppression, and you know what maybe sometimes it is, but I consider safe guarding the home equally as important as walking to the closed road. The area of the demonstration and the destruction that accompanies political demonstrations is not in a field far away, it is in their village, on their streets. Right when this all began a window was broken of a house, a man turned to me and told me that that is the house of the leader of the demonstration, and that it is always targeted, most windows on it are broken, it has been sprayed with nasty brown water and has caught fire a few times.
These people are living it, the young boys are running around their role models, with swimming googles for the tear gas and a scarf over their mouths. The idea that these teenage boys are the central image of what we fear as Americans, is disturbing. An Arab guy, with a scarf wrapped around his face. Once you see it this begins to clicks, once you see that this teenage boy in his jeans, a t-shirt and Adidas with a rope in hand and a scarf around his face does not in anyway compare to the presence of an Israeli Soldier.
Left, tear gas canister and right a teacher at the town, and a weekly participant
As the soldiers throw tear gas canisters down from their strategic points, everyone ducks, and looks around for where it will fall. I can tell you right now, tear gas sucks, it chokes, it burns, it feels like it is coating your mouth yet you cannot spit it out. When the men ran, we ran with them. I had a scarf wrapped around my face, and it did absolutely nothing other than covering how distorted my face was, my sunglasses hiding my tearing, burning eyes. This is what these people do every week.
Every week since 2008 on Friday and Saturday they protest, they walked towards the street never quite getting their. The frustration rose from with in me, this is ineffective, why are these adults exposing their children to this apparently ineffective means of attaining their goals? From 5 years old or even younger this is what these kids see as a means of affecting change! Then I realized, what else can they do? What other options are available? And is this a means of maintaining a symbolic struggle, so their kids understand how important it is to stay?
Burning Tires
I am struggling with this mentally, it hurts, to see this and know that my tax dollars are supporting this. The day we spent at Kafr Qaddum, was one of the calmest protests in months, no live rounds, just rubber bullets and tear gas. The Palestinians lite burning tired in the road in order to slow or stop the tanks. The Israeli Army brought a bulldozer to move it so the tanks could pass. The boys flung live tear gas canisters and rocks at the soldiers.
One of the largest human rights abuses of the second Intifada was the arrests of children for throwing rocks, these kids were beat, or interrogated before returned to their families. I am imagining what a rock is compared to tear gas or a live bullet. The leader of the protest mentioned his sons femur was shattered by a live bullet from the Israeli's his son is 11 and just got to the point where he can walk on his own again. I understand that both sides have fault and responsibility in this situation but, how can a people grow to trust each other with so much existing fear, and I mean on both sides Israeli's are afraid and so are Palestinians.
Injuries, very minimal and minor that were sustained during this day of demonstration.
I hope that this post brings up some reflective points for people, about the privilege we have to be living in such a safe space with our humans rights being respected, and our youth having opportunity.
This group posts weekly videos of the demonstrations, below is the link to their Youtube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoGyRQL0wU0LzZAC44knHKA
Photo Credit to Patri de Blas, thank you!! you are an amazing photographer.
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