Silence: Indulgence of the Powerful/Symptom of Suffering (and my e-mail address)

I left Palestine a little over a month ago, and every day I read the news and wonder what it means for the lives of the people that I met there. I'm frustrated that the governments and politicians have the audacity to say that they are so principled or fervent that they won't hold talks, won't move forward, won't recognize each other. They have the privilege to be able to do that, they can retreat to their respective sides and justify their silence. Meanwhile, there are people in Palestine who would like nothing more than to have somebody listen to them, and there are others, even Israelis who would listen, who are listening, when they can, but the machine of oppression and ignorance and power steamrolls those voices so that they can't be heard. And there are others who just don't (want to) hear.
Do the ends justify the means? Does withholding aid to Palestine, because of Hamas, punish Hamas? It cripples their ability to govern, and they are certainly weakened, but do they suffer? Are they learning a lesson about democracy? No. The people are suffering, they aren't being paid, and they are being punished. And meanwhile, the US won't recognize Hamas as anything but a terrorist group, Hamas refuses to recognize Israel, and all the moderate voices are lost as every side withdraws to their respective corners, waiting for someone else to budge.
Feed the hungry. Pay the poor. Educate the uneducated. House the homeless, protect the vulnerable, restore dignity, and recognize that politics is not about the players, or power, or religion or ideology or any of that. It's about the people. Every day that passes where nothing more is accomplished in moving towards peace, another meter of that Wall goes up. Another Palestinian family goes without a paycheck. Another crazy terrorist launches a rocket into Israel, and another Israeli teenager is commanded to kill. There is no dignity in violence, no excuses for allowing people to suffer. Give the Palestinians their aid. Other countries have found a way to bypass Hamas, to get to the citizens who need it most. Forget the politics and remember that we are talking about real people, like you and me, who want to live a real life, but instead suffer in silence and wait for the people in the suits to find common ground. Here's the common ground: we could all be Palestinian. We could all be Israeli, or American, or Lebanese. We all drew a lottery ticket when we were born, and some of us got lucky. All human beings can suffer. Some can inflict suffering. And some can make a real, a big, difference, right now. No one should retreat from the table when the quality of life of an enormous group of innocent people is at stake. There is common ground; we are standing on it as we speak. Let's try taking it from there.

This stream of thought was sort of inspired by this petition (scroll down for English version) and also because I realized that what I read about Palestine and Israel in the news is so abstract, and almost always from a macro, political level. I tell myself that at least it's in the news. Someone asked me if there was a special security force with my group while I was there, and another confided that he was practically positive that I was going to get kidnapped. What kind of news are we being fed to think things like that? No wonder so many people chuckle when I tell them that I studied peace and conflict resolution. No wonder they say, "good luck," or "yeah, they could use that over there," as if there's nothing to be done about the "other" people who just can't seem to stop fighting. I spent 8 weeks in Palestine, so maybe it's no wonder that I found the courage to speak openly when people ask about what it's like to be an American in Palestine. I speak because what they should really be asking is what's it like to be a Palestinian in Palestine, because they aren't finding that in the papers, or hearing it on the news, or in the political debates taking place. And now, I tell all of you, because I can. And because I believe in the truth behind my opinions more than ever. I'm no politician, and I don't grasp all the complexities of political relations, but I've realized that I can still have opinions. And strong ones. And that I shouldn't be afraid to share them just because someone might disagree. So, to my mostly anonymous blog readers, sorry to make a sudden swerve into politics in this post, but I think you can see how it's been a long time coming. peace&love
Cassie
If you want to get in touch with me, I'm (finally) going public: cassie.weaver@gmail.com