Indigenous erasure

In less than three weeks, Israel has killed over 7,000 Palestinians; some 70% are estimated to be women and children, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Israel's scorched earth policy has leveled over half of the residential homes in Gaza, leaving some 1.4 million internally displaced refugees. The refugees are the lucky ones. It's estimated that as a result of Israel's policy of targeting Palestinian homes, about 1,600 people, including 900 children, have been reported missing and may be under the rubble. The devastation is unparalleled.

With the collapse of the healthcare system as a result of Israel intentionally bombing multiple hospitals, the mass crowding of refugees is turning into an incubator for disease. In one day, primary healthcare centers in the Gaza Strip governorates recorded 3,150 epidemic disease cases, mostly in children. The epidemics encompassed diarrheal diseases, food poisoning, skin issues, scabies, and bronchial infections, with numerous chicken pox cases also noted. A large, unmanageable epidemic wave is feared, especially with the rampant spread of diseases due to shelter overcrowding, scarce potable water, and inadequate personal hygiene.

On October 26, the Israelis allowed a mere 12 trucks bearing water, food, and medical supplies to enter Rafah crossing with Egypt. This brings the total number of humanitarian aid trucks that have entered Gaza since October 21 to 74, compared to the pre-hostility average of 500 truckloads entering Gaza every working day. The choice to disrupt life-giving aid highlights Israel's intention to eliminate the indigenous population — which has been the capstone of Israeli state policy since its creation.

As Israel is undoubtedly set to move this genocide forward, it's critical that solidarity activists abroad not only make their voices heard but also set up mechanisms of accountability. Public actions, without a built-in component of accountability, is nothing more than moral grandstanding. For decades, legacy NGOs in the West have monetized Palestinian suffering, capturing vital movement resources that should be allocated to organizers who are committed to a future of justice through decolonization. An excellent example of this, of course, is the Democratic Socialists of America championing themselves as the progressive option of US politics but refusing to discipline Rep. Jamaal Bowman for his Zionist positions.

You have to ask yourself and be willing to tell the public what you are willing to do if the target you are applying pressure to — whether it be an elected official or an institution — doesn't meet your demands. Are you willing to withhold your vote? Stop your donations? Perhaps organize a campaign to get larger donors to stop funding them? — You know, all the things the Zionist movement has been doing for decades to ensure that there is uncompromising support for their settler-colonial project. We admit, particularly for folks just joining organizations or in organizations where the culture doesn't support accountability, that developing tactics of holding people responsible can be awkward. It may even introduce conflict into the organizing space because accountability between your group and elected officials and institutions can potentially tear apart those relationships.

For real change to happen, there must be long-term follow-through. And if you get nervous or scared to push forward, demanding your group develop accountability from electeds and institutions, remember, Palestinians are literally trying to reach the screams of their loved ones buried under twisted rebar and broken concrete. Palestinians are relying on you.

In solidarity, Cody