I spent much of the first three years of my life at my teta and jidu’s home in San Luis Obispo. In their backyard, they had a large garden with every fruit and vegetable variety imaginable. As my jidu and I would walk around the garden identifying different plants, I noticed everything from cherries, figs, grapefruit, and watermelon to avocados, zucchini, and edible flowers that he would incessantly encourage me to try.
In their garden and at their home, they taught me how to look at mundane objects and moments with tremendous love, curiosity, and humanity. Now, I advocate for Palestine and for the universality of human rights because of this love––my love for humanity has fueled my belief that if everyone had access to the information I have used to learn about Palestine, they would naturally reach the same conclusions as I have.
I have put my thoughts on this page to process what is happening and to bring others into this processing. Every day, I think about different avenues and ways of getting my peers involved in the Palestinian liberation movement. I think to myself, Palestine might not feel like a natural cause to support for everyone, but I can show them why it is.
My jidu chopped down the palm tree in his garden to see its heart and its core and to share them with others, knowing that this tree would grow back because he would nurture and tend to it. Right now, I am asking you to perform a similar act of labor and of nurturing: I ask you to cut through some of the defensive tissue that might be preventing you from thinking about, talking about, and advocating for Palestine.
She accuses Israel of genocide and you don’t see anything wrong with that? You have no knowledge that Jews have a three thousand year connection with the land? You have no idea that Arabs were told to leave, that they were not forced out except when Jews were attacked or felt threatened? Did you know that Arabs force a million Jews to flee? And the most incredible thing is that the Arabs are hate to Jews from the moment they leave the womb and you seem not to know that either.