I S S U E 1 • F e b r u a r y 2 02 4
LOVE IN
ACTION
@Ceysaamera
Solidarity in practice
Message from the Pod This is a collective offering, from our broken hearts to yours. It is a snapshot of how we have responded to the call to We affirm stand in solidarity with Palestinians the basic human rights of Palestinians to safety, shelter, enduring genocidal violence in Gaza food, water, education, and the West Bank. As we work to build the equality under the law, and world we yearn for, one in which all beings are self-determination. safe and free, we strive to practice the values of that world. Although we come from diverse We backgrounds, and our politics are not identical, uplift the voices there are several things we all agree on with of Palestinians and our whole hearts: follow their leadership.
We reject the notion that the most well-documented genocide in history is “complicated” or that the violence began on October 7. We call for the safe return of all hostages, Israeli and Palestinian.
We have a responsibility to support Palestinians as they fight for survival in this moment and against occupation, apartheid, displacement, and blockade over the long term.
We extend our deep compassion to the families and friends of all the victims and captives, Palestinian and Israeli. We engage in regular, disciplined, collective action— because to witness a genocide without acting is to inflict a “moral injury” on collective and the self.
We recognize the urgent imperative of healing unresolved We generational trauma look to the Global South that feeds the cycle for recent examples of violence. If this of post-conflict peace processes that were offering speaks to transformative, if imperfect: you, we invite you to share the dismantling of South it far and wide. If you are not Africa’s apartheid state and the yet part of the Palestinian rebuilding of Rwanda after its solidarity movement, we hope genocide.
something in these pages will open a door for you to join us.
2
Whales Moving as a pod, whales exhibit a collective intelligence that far surpasses that of humans. They care for each other as they pursue common goals—each playing a unique role in an exquisite choreography of cooperation. What a luminous model for solidarity in practice. Our pod formed the week after the 10/7 Hamas-led operation, when it became clear that Israel’s response—broadcast live by Gazans to the world on social media—was a genocide in motion. United by our shared commitment to LIFE, we meet thrice weekly for collective actions to challenge our government’s material support of Israel’s crimes against humanity. This zine is more than a rebuke of algorithmic suppression and media bias. In this and subsequent issues, members of our pod weave together reflections and care practices from our own lineages of struggle and survival: Palestinian, Yemeni, Jewish, Black and Native American, South African, Caribbean, Korean, Indian, Balkan, Iranian, and Mexican. “We are tending to each other as we tend to the wounds of the world,” as one of our pod members said. This is the essence of love in action. Jung Won Kim Editor
Nandita Bhatt Designer
3
Dawline-Jane Oni-Eseleh @disfordilettante
Breaking Through the Information Bubble When it comes to Israel and Palestine, the algorithms that divide our society into separate information universes are diabolically efficient. Human Rights Watch published a report in December 2023 documenting systemic censorship of Palestine content by Meta/Facebook/ Instagram https://bit.ly/3S1eAqT Mainstream Western news organizations like the BBC, The Guardian, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and NPR have all displayed a stark bias toward Israel and U.S. state narratives. Reporters use different words to describe the killing of Palestinians (“died”) vs. Israelis (“slaughtered”). Headlines employ passive-voice language to avoid naming WHO is bombing Palestinians in Gaza or who is enforcing the blockade that is starving 2+ Million civilians and depriving them of water and life-saving medicines. The anti-Palestinian bias in mainstream news media is well documented in academic studies and media criticism, including a recent exposé in The Intercept https://bit.ly/3U2PF9k This is why it is essential to seek information from additional sources.
Israeli Casualties in the October Al Aqsa Flood Operation Source: Intercept
Total number of people killed in the October 7 Attack: *Includes an unknown number of civilians killed by Israeli military forces
1,139*
695 Civilians 373 Israeli Military 71 Foreign Nationals 36 Children 240 Captives Taken O Babies beheaded 6
Sources: All data from Bituah Leumi, Israel’s social security agency via Agence France Presse 15/12/2023, Haaretz 12/03/2023
Gaza Strip By the Numbers
Source: Integrated Food *Security Phase Classification,
a partnership including U.N. agencies and NGO, via Reuters
1.1 Million*
people experiencing emergency-level food insecurity.
7
Solidarity Means We Are
Not Alone
By S.A.
My story is one of millions of displaced families around the world. As a child of the Palestinian diaspora who was born in the United States, my daily existence has been shaped by oppression, censorship, and the constant struggle for liberation. Fear has long silenced our voices as Palestinians, fueled by concerns of prejudice and negative stereotypes surrounding our identity. When I examine my fear, I can see how the Zionist agenda has gripped every part of my life, from my career and livelihood to the security and safety of my family in Palestine. The laws imposed on Palestinians keep us silent. Anything I say or do in America can have negative consequences for my family back home. Even the phrase ‘from the river to the sea’ has been labeled as something other than a call for freedom from oppression. The chorus of voices from the international community uplifting the Palestinian liberation movement today is both vital and deeply meaningful. I want my family and people in Palestine to know: You are not
alone. We see you, your perseverance, your optimism in the harshest of trials, your patience, your love… love for life, family, land, your endless hospitality. How you hold resilience in the face of an intolerant apartheid regime is the epitome of what it means to be Palestinian. My heart breaks as I see hope in the eyes of my fellow Palestinians with each passing year, as we’ve awaited justice that has not yet come.
8
Ya seedi If only you were left to be, You chose to stay, not following the family Only then, your body wouldn’t be riddled with bullets Hard to tell… What if the soldiers changed their mind that day? Went down another road, any other way Leaving you to pray I wish you were here to see the world’s solidarity People in the streets, in the millions, screaming “...we are all Palestinian!” Young and old chant, “Palestine will be free.” If only you could hear their voices ring for the chance of a long held dream In my mind as the keeper of a legacy that will only grow With the marchers saying “Occupation needs to go.”
Oh Grandpa You are indeed a witness… a (shaheed) While you’re gone I’ll raise our flag with honor, for every martyr Don’t worry ya seedi, your story planted a seed within me I’ll make sure to nourish your gift of resilience, love of our homeland, and our overflowing generosity I’ll share our trials and our joys with the world Don’t worry ya seedi, we won’t forget the way you and citi raised a family under occupation, tightly kept Fleeing from one city to the next to keep them safe You continued our legacy with so much faith Held on to our keys In hope that one day Palestine will be free I wish you were here to see… how people see you When they shout “From the river to the sea!” Palestine will be free
9
Metta Meditation A Foundation for Compassionate Action Our solidarity pod begins each meeting with a breathing exercise and metta meditation, a practice that is central to engaged Buddhism. Metta is the Pali word for loving kindness or benevolence. We recite these verses as a kind of spell to protect our own hearts from the long-term effects of anger, for even righteous anger can take a toll on our spirits over time. Metta fortifies our courage to stay tender and reminds us to work for the awakening and healing of all beings—those who are suffering and those who incite violence. As the facilitator recites each verse, they ring a bell and let it wash over us. Jung Won Kim
May I be happy. May I be well. May I be safe. May I be peaceful and at ease. May I learn to see with the eyes of compassion and love. • May you be happy. May you be well. May you be safe. May you be peaceful and at ease. May you learn to see with the eyes of compassion and love. • May they be happy. May they be well. May they be safe. May they be peaceful and at ease. May they learn to see with the eyes of compassion and love. • May we all be happy. May we all be well. May we all be safe. May we all be peaceful and at ease. May we all learn to see with the eyes of compassion and love. •
10
Transmutation Through Harboring painful emotions in Movement our bodies hurts our personal health and can cause hormonal imbalances, insomnia, and even disease. Our ancestors have created a wealth of movement practices to help us transmute grief, rage, anxiety, and despair into different frequencies. During times like this, we must move more, dance after sorrow, sing after screaming. Movement is a form of self-care that helps us touch freedom—and it is also free! Below is a brief summary of the movement practices our solidarity pod uses, based on qi gong, dance, and ‘pelvic girdle enlivenment” with somatic awareness for an 11-minute flow. Many of the above exercises can be found online with videos for further instruction. This list is meant as an inspiration to your collective practice: 10 Minute “White Tiger Qi Gong” Self Healing Routine: https://bit.ly/48L90jH Daisy Lee Radiant Lotus: https://bit.ly/47MHyAV Info on Qi Gong & Shaking: https://bit.ly/47QMapw
Full-body shaking qi gong (2 min) // Self-Massage (1 min) // Hip Opening/ Rolls (1 min) // Opening Heart To The Sky (with self-hug) (qigong) (2 min) // Pelvis contractions & openings (2nd position plie) (1 min) // Xpand stretch side-to-side with center to roll up (1 min) // 3-step rhythm-joy-rising (salsa, cha cha cha, samba = slow, medium, fast) (3 min) // ‘Water Flow Free’ Open Improv Movement/ Energy Rising Jam // (optional) Gratitude
-djassi 11
From South Africa With Love Sean Jacobs
In 1989, on the eve of Nelson Mandela’s release from prison, we didn’t yet have state power. But the famed trumpet player Hugh Masekela told an interviewer, “I think when we [South Africans] are free, our main thing is going to be to go everywhere in the world where there is oppression and fight it.” The following year, a newly freed Mandela made a triumphant visit to the United States, primarily to thank a coalition of minority groups and white leftists who had championed the South African cause and fought the Republicans and white American elites who had sided with white South Africans. In a clip from a town hall meeting chaired by TV host Ted Koppel, still widely shared on social media today, Mandela reaffirmed our historical ties to Palestinians and our ongoing commitment to supporting their struggle. A few years after Mandela became South Africa’s first democratically elected president, in 1997, he reminded his fellow South Africans: “We know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.” Before the end of his presidential term, Mandela visited Palestine and described feeling “at home amongst compatriots.” The fires of that deep solidarity were fueled by decades of collaboration between Israel and South Africa’s apartheid regime—including the exchange of weapons, nuclear technology, and many diplomatic visits. It is worth noting that the U.S. government, which had regarded both the ANC and the PLO as terrorist
Motaz Azaiza • Gaza-born Palestinian Photojounalist • @motaz_aziza
Ronald Lamola • Minister of Justice • South Africa Legal Team • S.A. vs Israel • International Court of Justice
12
I grew up in 1980s Cape Town, where people wore keffiyehs (we called them Arafat scarfs) and flew Palestinian flags alongside the banned flags of the African National Congress and the South African Communist Party. Like Palestinians, we rallied and struggled for self-determination and liberation from settler colonialism.
organizations for decades, only removed Nelson Mandela from the official U.S. terrorist watch list in 2008. I felt a sense of immense pride as I watched South Africa’s presentation to the International Court of Justice on January 11, 2024, charging Israel with genocide. The Israeli delegation was forced to listen as the South African representatives to the court explicitly called out Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land since 1948 and categorically named the systematic oppression of Palestinians as apartheid before putting on record Israel’s war crimes since October 7th. Hague
Witnessing the South African team deliver such a meticulously prepared set of arguments moved me deeply. Their surnames alone told a story about our multicultural, flawed democracy recovering from decades of colonial extraction by a brutal, racist regime: Hassim, Ngcukaitobi, Dugard, Du Plessis, and Madonsela, with Judge Dikgang Moseneke, who was a prisoner on Robben Island as a teenager, on the bench. The team is a mosaic of hard-won national identity, a decades-long struggle for justice against an apartheid ethnostate not unlike today’s Israel. And we showed the world the potential we have as a nation (shoutout to the Irish for the assist). I was so happy to see it that I didn’t even have any insults for parochial South African liberals and reactionaries that day.
For me, the events of the last week marked the beginning of South Africa throwing its weight behind the larger commitments of our struggle. Our case clearly refutes the accommodationism into which South African politics have settled at home. More than that, we helped set the stage for a new kind of global realignment—one that demands that the international institutions designed by the Global North to suit their imperial and colonial agendas be applied equitably and fairly to work for us, the Global South.
Cape Town
The following week, we were joined by Mexico, Chile, survivors of the Bosnian genocide, and Irish lawyers who either joined South Africa’s case or referred Israeli leaders to the International Criminal Court—while Namibia, our neighbor that was also once occupied by the apartheid government, officially rebuked the hypocrisy of its former colonizer Germany for siding with Israel.
13
sefirenow #Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow #ceasefire
@flyers_for_falastin @hey.honeybee93
#Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow #Ceas
#Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow
efirenow #Ceasefirenow #Ceasefirenow #Cea
It’s Complica ted
Honestly, it’s been weird – the deluge of DMs from friends sending memes about how Yemen has come through for Gaza. Texts from Palestinians sending love and praise, under a picture of a Houthi rebel selling seats on what was an Israel-bound cargo ship and is now a blinged-out floating hookah lounge. Lookin’ like the Flava-Flav of the Arabian sea. Yemen coming through is the Da’ud vs. Goliath story we all need right now - Da’ud being my cousin, and me the one who gathers up the roses thrown onto the stage. At a time when so many of us are grieving the daily atrocities of this phase of the 75-year-long occupation of Palestine and decades-long siege of Gaza, messages like this should be hitting like a dopamine drip. But they don’t. Although I take pride in Yemeni solidarity, this shit runs deep. I can’t speak for everyone, but most Yemenis I know don’t feel warm and fuzzy toward the Houthis. They seized power with foreign backing (in nefarious complicity with the outgoing dictator, many believe) in a post “Arab Spring” vacuum that skipped straight to winter and forgot to change. More than half the country is starving while a bunch of kids with AK47s spin around in chairs that many had hoped would be occupied by Yemen’s first modern, democratically elected government.
16
N. Zuhair
On Yemeni Sol idarity with Palestin e
Conditions will worsen now that the World Food Programme has cut off food assistance in retaliation (you did it, Joe), and the sirens of a regional proxy war keep getting louder. Most of my family lives there. I worry for them. And I resent not being able to celebrate these wins, because I feel like my people are taking an L on our behalf. So yes to any and all forms of solidarity. And thanks for the roses. But how about giving Yemenis something to eat?
Visit https://baitulmaal.org/yemen/ to learn more & donate
17
SONGS OF FREEDOM
PLAYLIST VOL 1
https://bit.ly/3uiGsPD
1 “Ana Dami Falastini” by Mohammed Assaf Mohammad Assaf’s rousing 2015 hit mysteriously disappeared from streaming platforms earlier this year after a British proIsrael group launched a petition campaign to have it removed. It has since returned and is often heard at Palestinian-led marches. The Arabic hook, translated, says: Keeping my oath, following my religion/ You will find me on my land. I belong to my people, I sacrifice my soul for them/ My blood is Palestinian. 2 “Paper Planes” by M.I.A. This Grammy-nominated song by Maya Arulpragasam, the artist known as M.I.A., satirizes the American perception of immigrants from war-torn countries. 3 “War” by Bob Marley & the Wailers Based on a speech by Ethiopian leader Haile Selassie, this global anthem of justice reminds us that there will always be war until we are all free and equal. 4 “Narrative by Man” by Unspecified Vocalist A spoken invitation into a Palestinian P.O.V. 5 “Dammi Falastini” by A. Rob, Waheeb Nasan Gen Z’s favorite remix of Mohammed Assaf’s liberation classic 6 “Fight the Power” by Public Enemy Black people have a lot in common with the Palestinian struggle. Like Palestinians, we are also fighting the powers that be for our basic human rights. 7. “Downpressor Man” by Peter Tosh A reminder for all oppressors that someday they will have to face their reckoning
18
8 “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” by Gil Scott-Heron We won’t find the truth on mainstream news channels, but we know the global revolution is happening because we are sharing it with each other live and direct. 9 “War” by Edwin Starr A straightforward banger about the evils of war 10 “Long Live Palestine Part 2” by Lowkey, Eslam Jawaad, Hasan Salaam, NARCY, Shadia Mansour, Hichkas, Reveal, DAM Like his out-front support for a free Palestine, Iraqi artist-scholar Lowkey kicks off this 2009 collab with the critical reminder that “Not all Jews are Zionists, and not all Zionists are Jews.” 11 “Amrikkka” by Shabjdeed If there were a message we could share with the people of Gaza, it would be this part of Shabjdeed’s song: “My tears are gushing from my eyes/running down my forehead/Only If I knew that you are carrying so much.” 12 “The Harder They Come” by Jimmy Cliff The lyric “As sure as the sun will shine/I’m gonna get my share now of what’s mine/And then the harder they come, the harder they fall, one and all” makes this a classically Jamaican-style warning to oppressors. DJ Belinda Becker
CEASE
FIRE NOW
19
A Prayer For
My People
by N.K.Z.
My heart is broken, and through the cracks a deep anger surges. As I watch video after video of mothers wailing over the dead bodies of their children, nothing makes sense anymore. They say we must eliminate Hamas at all costs, that the siege on Gaza is for our safety. Safety? What kind of safety is this? Every bone in my body knows this is wrong. 20
My certainty is greater than me. It stretches back across time, to my ancestors who fled the pogroms in Eastern Europe. Hunted for being Jews, they were attacked, beaten, raped, and murdered, their bodies, homes, and businesses burned. Some never made it out alive, a lucky few did. I am born from their escape. This trauma lives within me, passed down from generation to generation as it does for millions of Jews descended from survivors of pogroms and the Holocaust. October 7 revealed a massive schism among Jews over what we believe will truly make us safe. We are taught from a young age to remember the horrors of the past in order to ensure they never happen again. And yet leading genocide experts and international human rights organizations say that Israel is inflicting a genocide on Palestinians right before our very eyes. Are Palestinians not humans too? Do they not count? It is wrong for us to accept any form of dehumanization. Have we not learned? We know where that leads. For me, and for the multitudes of Jews around the world who have awakened to the realities of Israel’s systematic oppression of Palestinians, I know in my bones that the cry of “never again” means never again for anyone. There are those who say Jews should defend Israel, no matter what. But this is antithetical to what being Jewish means to me. As Jews we are taught from a very young age to ask questions, to debate, to develop our ideas in community rather than in isolation. What this moment is calling on all of us to do is to question everything: not just the Zionist political project but also the global forces of capitalism and imperialism that necessitate it. President Biden himself said in 1986, “Were there not an Israel, the United States would have to invent an Israel to protect our interests in the region.” It’s essential that we remember the ideology and prescription of Zionism is very, very new. In comparison, Judaism itself is ancient some say more than 4,000 years old. I recently met a Palestinian elder who told me she remembers a time before the creation of the state of Israel and before the 1948 Nakba when Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived peacefully on that land as friends, neighbors, colleagues, and family This is a vision I hold close in my heart for what is possible in the near future. My prayer, my wish for my people is this: that we heal our ancestral wounds, so that we can right these wrongs, and free ourselves in the process. For Jewish safety and well-being is inextricably intertwined with Palestinian liberation. May Palestine be free. . 21
22
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
SPIRITUAL GROUNDING
READINGS
Filmography Click on Posters to Watch Trailers
23
This series was inspired by the real-life stories of Palestinian children featured in the 2014 documentary Born in Gaza, directed by Hernán Zin.
24
@CARLOSVISUALDIARY
25
H
grief, anger, and/or the desire to take action. Set up a recurring meeting time (we meet 3x per week) and create a Zoom or Google Meet link. Here is the hourlong flow for our meetings; feel free to adopt/adapt it! More info on meditation and grounding practices on pp. 10-11.
d Po
Solidarity a m r Act o Fo ion t w o Identify friends or acquaintances who have expressed
5 min arrive into space, drop a word or phrase in the chat for internal weather report
5 min arrive in our bodies
with breath work
10 - 15 min phone/email/ letter/fax to our reps for permanent ceasefire
5 min guided metta meditation
5 min movement to “shake it off” qi gong, somatic shaking, intuitive dance
20 min holding space for each other to share what’s on our mind/heart Close deep breathing
How to Form a Gaza Solidarity Action Pod Seeding Sovereignty webinar 10/30/23 https://bit.ly/3THoSPp
26
Mars Cazimi Special: Solidarity Pods Chani Nicholas IG Live 11/17/23 https://bit.ly/3NULQ22
Resources for Solidarity Actions A Guide to Amplifying Palestinian Voices bit.ly/482NiGP Boycott, Divest, Sanctions (BDS) Guide to Strategic Campaigning for Palestinian Rights https://bdsmovement.net/BDS-Guide-StrategicCampaigning U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights Organizing Resources https://uscpr.org/resources/#activist art: Alec Dunn @ix.nay
P h o t o : G a z a B e a c h . Ya s s e r Q u i d h /A n d a l o u A g e n c y . ( c r e a t i v e c o m m o n s . o r g / l i c e n s e s / b y - n c - s a /4 . 0 )
sign up to be notified when Vol. 2 is published We will never share your email
This zine is a collective, volunteer initiative. As such, we are relying on friends & readers to join us in a guerilla-style distribution effort. We invite you to disseminate the digital PDF via email & social media. If you are moved by this publication and have the resources to print some copies, we encourage you to place them in bookshops, waiting rooms, cafés, and other places where it might reach new eyes. Download print-friendly version here: bit.ly/solidarityzine