Palestine – Sabina McAllister

Things are getting so much worse in northern Gaza. It feels disgusting to scroll past social media posts about active suffering there interspersed with tips for Halloween crafts.

I can’t take the cognitive dissonance anymore. So I’ve decided I’m going to write an email every day to my MP, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister and the Prime Minister as one way to channel my rage and anguish. Here’s a bit of what I sent them today:

As you know, in the past three weeks, Israel has stepped up its wanton violence against civilians in the region. 640 Palestinians have been killed in northern Gaza in the past 17 days, 33 of them in the past day. With the assault on the Jabalia refugee camp, it very much appears as though Israel is attempting to empty northern Gaza of any Palestinians.
Every day, I ask myself: how is this war making Israel any safer?
Canada has always prided itself on its role as a global peacemaker. As Bob Rae himself has said, the political aspirations of the Palestinians will only ever be solved through diplomatic means, not military ones. Where is Canada now, in a region that disparately needs peace?

I also:

signed this petition
signed up to receive news from Jewish Voice for Peace and Independent Jewish Voices Canada. I am so aware of the ongoing need to counter rising anti-Semitism; plus I want to stay tuned in not just to Palestinian voices, but progressive, anti-Zionist voices of Jewish folks, too. (The Israeli media I follow doesn’t always make room for that, with the mighty exception of Haaretz journalist Gideon Levy.)*
used the money from the cancellation of mini getaway to make a donation to World Central Kitchen

I just need to take one small action every day to stave off absolutely going mad at the horrors of the world.

*If you have a Toronto Public Library card, you can read Haaretz and other newspapers from the Middle East for free using the PressReader service.

Winnipeg Free Press writer Melissa Martin has been living in Ukraine for a while now, and has an excellent newsletter called Re/Light. Her most recent issue features a shout-out for an organization that pairs English speakers with Ukranians wanting to improve their English skills. (Ukraine’s applications to NATO and EU has apparently increased locals’ appetite to speak English). The organization pairing speakers and learners for online lessons is called Balakun, and it looks really well organized.

This got me wondering if there are organizations doing the same thing for Palestinians. Not that too many people in Gaza would have extracurricular learning opportunities on their minds these days. But being able to speak English is a form of privilege on the world stage. Sharing English-language skills can potentially be as valuable as making monetary donations.

So I looked into it, and indeed, there is an organization in the West Bank called Go Palestine that supports what looks like online opportunities to teach English in exchange for learning Arabic. We know settler violence has increased in the West Bank in the past year; for example, the number of Palestinian children killed by Israeli forces tripled in the past year, going from 39 to 115. And yet, Go Palestine still appears to be functioning, and the appetite to improve English skills are still there.

Back in the ’90s, with the rise of globalization, I used to joke that going abroad to teach English was linguistic imperialism. I see it very differently now.