(no subject)
Many of my friends, I presume, read Momus's Live Journal, and have already seen these photos, but for those of you who do not.....This really had an impact on me. I try to remain unbiased, as I feel the Israeli/Palestinian conflict is so deeply rooted at this point, that it is hard to completely side with one group, or the other (the Israelis or the Palestinians), plus this would just continue to feed the conflict based upon divisions, and exclusiveness, not inclusiveness. The short summary of the reality (in my mind) is that innocent people are being killed on both sides of the conflict, and even those fighting are products of a deeply engrained hatred.....they know nothing else. (This excludes the importation of Russian checkpoint guards etc, of course).
It is hard however, for me to not sympathize just a wee bit more for those trapped in the open-air prisons of the Gaza Strip and West Bank, who are being refused basic human necessities, especially when our former government leaders seemed to only sympathize (by means on finances, weapons, and soldiers) with Israel. It is too early as of now to see exactly what will or will not happen in the Obama administration. Anyway, here are the photos that stuck me, both in a heart-wrenching, and positive way.
These are Palestinian students in a school in Gaza. The name cards next to them represent fellow classmates killed by army shells last month.
Think about this.
This is the University of Plymouth (in the UK) where students have occupied room 202 in the Smeaton Building. They are doing this in solidarity with the people of Palestine, as well as to protest the University's stance on Israeli war crimes. The students occupying the room intend for lectures to continue un-interrupted, while they (a small group of students) "remain unobtrusively at the back of the room, as a symbolic presence"
Momus's blog continues to list several other Universities that are staging "occupations" in protest. He even mentions that some of the groups have successfully attained scholarships for Palestinian students to come to their campuses. (Thus being the heartwarming part)
It is hard however, for me to not sympathize just a wee bit more for those trapped in the open-air prisons of the Gaza Strip and West Bank, who are being refused basic human necessities, especially when our former government leaders seemed to only sympathize (by means on finances, weapons, and soldiers) with Israel. It is too early as of now to see exactly what will or will not happen in the Obama administration. Anyway, here are the photos that stuck me, both in a heart-wrenching, and positive way.
These are Palestinian students in a school in Gaza. The name cards next to them represent fellow classmates killed by army shells last month.
Think about this.
This is the University of Plymouth (in the UK) where students have occupied room 202 in the Smeaton Building. They are doing this in solidarity with the people of Palestine, as well as to protest the University's stance on Israeli war crimes. The students occupying the room intend for lectures to continue un-interrupted, while they (a small group of students) "remain unobtrusively at the back of the room, as a symbolic presence"
Momus's blog continues to list several other Universities that are staging "occupations" in protest. He even mentions that some of the groups have successfully attained scholarships for Palestinian students to come to their campuses. (Thus being the heartwarming part)