Truth to Power
It has been several days since I have had the opportunity to write. In that time I have experienced such a wide range of emotions – it has been a very fast rollercoaster ride. I have seen the prison that the West Bank is, I have listened to very angry Palestinians (some who are committed to non-violent resistance, some who push that boundary), I have been to the Martyrs Cemetery in Jenin Refugee Camp, experienced openly hostile students at Birziet University and ate lunch with students that were so happy that we had come to see them. I have waded in the Mediterranean, listened to Quakers that are facilitating amazing projects with Palestinian youth, stayed at the home of a Fattah leader and his family (including a nephew with Hamas sympathies who wanted an explanation of US farm policy). I have cried at the Friends meeting house in Ramallah and protested at the Mukata as Condoleezza Rice was preparing to leave (timing is everything!). I cried with the Palestinian Coordinator of Combatants for peace, whose ten year old daughter was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier less than six months ago and I was amazed by his continuing commitment to non-violence. I have listened to and questioned the representative of the Hebron Settlers movement (fascism exits everywhere that hate lives), received a better understanding of the area’s history from members of the Christian Peacemakers Team and had tea with a Hebron family that lives with the harassment from the settlers. I have had the experience of walking through the Qualandia checkpoint and “zooming” along very bad roads and brand new Israeli only bypass roads. I have debated the boundaries of non-violence with other delegation members (I seem to hold the minority view) and the value (or lack of) of “anarchist” tactics in non-violent resistance. I have maps and books and pictures and information overload. Some moments give me great hope – the young man that after being beaten by soldiers decided that his resistance would be gathering children of the village and painting peace – love on their faces while Israeli soldiers watched. Some have left me shaken and sad – the university students (Israeli and Palestinian) that are so angry they can not / will not talk to each other. The next three days promise to be just as intense, but then soon I will be home and left to figure out how to integrate this knowledge and these thoughts into my life, and how to bring the truth to people that don’t want to hear it.
It has been several days since I have had the opportunity to write. In that time I have experienced such a wide range of emotions – it has been a very fast rollercoaster ride. I have seen the prison that the West Bank is, I have listened to very angry Palestinians (some who are committed to non-violent resistance, some who push that boundary), I have been to the Martyrs Cemetery in Jenin Refugee Camp, experienced openly hostile students at Birziet University and ate lunch with students that were so happy that we had come to see them. I have waded in the Mediterranean, listened to Quakers that are facilitating amazing projects with Palestinian youth, stayed at the home of a Fattah leader and his family (including a nephew with Hamas sympathies who wanted an explanation of US farm policy). I have cried at the Friends meeting house in Ramallah and protested at the Mukata as Condoleezza Rice was preparing to leave (timing is everything!). I cried with the Palestinian Coordinator of Combatants for peace, whose ten year old daughter was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier less than six months ago and I was amazed by his continuing commitment to non-violence. I have listened to and questioned the representative of the Hebron Settlers movement (fascism exits everywhere that hate lives), received a better understanding of the area’s history from members of the Christian Peacemakers Team and had tea with a Hebron family that lives with the harassment from the settlers. I have had the experience of walking through the Qualandia checkpoint and “zooming” along very bad roads and brand new Israeli only bypass roads. I have debated the boundaries of non-violence with other delegation members (I seem to hold the minority view) and the value (or lack of) of “anarchist” tactics in non-violent resistance. I have maps and books and pictures and information overload. Some moments give me great hope – the young man that after being beaten by soldiers decided that his resistance would be gathering children of the village and painting peace – love on their faces while Israeli soldiers watched. Some have left me shaken and sad – the university students (Israeli and Palestinian) that are so angry they can not / will not talk to each other. The next three days promise to be just as intense, but then soon I will be home and left to figure out how to integrate this knowledge and these thoughts into my life, and how to bring the truth to people that don’t want to hear it.
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