How long will I have to convince liberals that Palestinians matter?
For several weeks now, I have been trying to write an article on the necessity of boycotting G4S, an act relevant to both the Palestinian liberation movement and the Black Lives Matter movement. Sitting at an intersection of oppressive infrastructure by Zionism and white supremacy, G4S owns hundreds of the private prisons where a disproportionate number of Black Americans are incarcerated and alarming numbers of Palestinian children are tortured and held in solitary confinement by Israel.
Drafts of this essay have seen the hot and now faded headlines of: the McKinney pool party, Sheldon Andelson’s anti-BDS summit, Israel’s exemption from the United Nations child rights’ abusers list, Caitlyn Jenner’s gender reassignment surgery, Rachel Dolezal “coming out as white,” Dylann Roof murdering 9 at the historic Emanuel AME Church, arson of the Church of Multiplication at Tabgha and the parallel incineration of black churches in the US, legalization of marriage equality, and Bree Newsome’s removal of the Confederate flag at the South Carolina state capitol.
Each event called me to relate the unheard, tragic news from Palestine to these current events in North America. I wanted to show how G4S, which profits from incarceration and deportation in the name of security for particular classes and races, is harmful to everyone! ..and Palestinians too! I was searching for a way to make us Palestinians relevant to the stream of popular liberal discourse.
Even after 67 years of Palestinian struggle under Zionism, and centuries of Palestinian resistance to occupation by various empires, it seems that the only way to create concern for Palestine is to tap into others’ concern for themselves.
I feel that asking you to boycott companies like G4S solely for their crimes against Palestinian lives will not convince you. I must talk about other lives too. I must hold Palestine in parallel to seemingly more immediate/relevant ethical concerns.
Source: mondoweiss.net