a reconciliation of realities

Art by Heather Doram, Antigua and Barbuda

this piece of writing is a bit different from what i usually

write but i am compelled to use my voice in this way and i am

trusting it.

“Sometimes we are blessed with being able to choose

the time, and the arena, and the manner of our revolution,

but more usually

we must do battle where we are standing.”

audre lorde

This is where I am standing.

I write on the heels of getting a tattoo of one of my mantras, “life nice,” and being surrounded by a coven of queeribbean people that offered me love and care that was expansive. Yet, I feel that there is so much for me to reconcile when I think about my my ability to say things like “thank you, more please” & “life nice” and the contrasting reality of the Palestinian people and other marginalized groups. When I think about the privilege I have to be on this side of the world, writing about gratitude, offering my perspective while Palestinians are being persecuted and killed in a mass genocide before our eyes, I am compelled to reconcile my reality with theirs.

This need for reconciliation does not lead me to despair, it could and there have been times when it has, but at this juncture of my life, it leads me to speak, to write, to acknowledge, and to bear witness.

The oppression of the Palestinian people is wrapped up in the oppression of marginalized communities all throughout the world and squarely all the communities I am a part of. black, woman, queer, from a small Caribbean island.

This is the danger of white supremacy and colonialism; it oppresses many of us in many forms, all insidious. Be not deluded.

I see many cries for peace, but calling for peace as an option is not enough. That cannot be the sole cry - peace in what context? When there are cries for peace, what does that mean to Israeli occupiers? Does it mean the continued unlawful occupation of Palestine? Does it mean a Palestinian-free Palestine? A cry for peace without context is vapid and useless.

There can be no peace where oppression runs rampant. I do not say this to incite violence, that is the farthest thing from my desire. I say this to urge people to think critically, that a call for peace and a ceasefire is not enough. Millions of Palestines know war through the context of hunger, lack of electricity, access to water, limitations on their movement and illegal of occupation of their land, that too is war. We must be cognizant of the language and the identifiers we use.

Oppressive systems are tools of war inflicted on Black & Brown bodies, LGBTQ+ bodies, disabled bodies. I hope we can all see clearly that war is more than missiles and bombs. Draconian laws and policies, harsh living conditions are all forms of war. Palestinians know war for what it is. Black & Brown bodies know war for what it is. LGBTQ+ people know war for what it is. Disabled people know war for it is.

Let us not be disillusioned.

FREE PALESTINE.

Access our library of educational resources on Palestine