We may never know the name of the soldier who killed Razan al-Najjar. But we do know the names of those who gave the order enabling him to kill her. We know Razan, with her head wrapped in scarves of different colors, showing an investment of time and thought. The color reveals a love for life.
By performing in Israel, the orchestra provides musical accompaniment to the world’s last settler-colonial state, at a time when other artists are canceling appearances there following the Palestinian call for a global boycott (BDS) of Israel, modeled after the South African anti-apartheid boycott.
What Israel fears more than suicide bombings, Hamas rockets, and stone throwers, is a genuinely nonviolent resistance movement that insists on self-determination, democracy, equality, peace, and justice for all.
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“A land without a people for a people without a land.” As seductive as that slogan was, it was willfully false, as amply documented in personal testimonies of Palestinians and Israelis, historical records, and scholarly research.
Palestine’s modern colonization begins with British troops landing on Mediterranean shores and moving northward from Egypt conquering the remaining parts of Ottoman territories. “Great” Britain’s planning, machinations and intrigues started earlier but the end of WWI, November 29th, 1917 is the accurate date for the loss of Palestine. From this date, Palestine and the Palestinians were set for dispossession and major powers manipulation to bring about a Jewish state.
In some circles, particularly among "progressive" Zionists, the terrible injustice done to the Palestinians is acknowledged, but as awful as the Nakba was, they say, it was what had to be done to create and ensure the security of the Jewish state. To be clear, the price was paid by the Palestinians-that is, the killing and expulsion of Palestinians for the sake of Jewish safety. The only way you can think that - is to believe that Jewish lives matter more . . .
Amid floundering peace talks, Jewish artists, historians, and activists are taking an increasingly critical look at Israel's founding and history.
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