age:19 fandoms: FF14, MLP:FIM, HTTYD!movie, MHA, KH, Genshin Impact, etc. Hobbies: Art and Video games She/they (Deviant Art: https://www.deviantart.com/rainbowponypotato) ( AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Potato_frend) I'm thinking about setting up a small business for my art. Any Tips for doing so are welcome.
149 posts
Latest Posts by potato-frend-blog - Page 3
Of course you don’t. Free college might hinder the school-to-prison pipeline your prison owning donors depend on
Tbh I think a lot of the rank-and-file goyische anti-Zionists don’t really realize that a large majority of the Jewish community sees them as a new generation trying (and thankfully not succeeding—yet) to enact another full-scale genocide against us. They’re so insulated by their tokens—who have either been gaslighted into accepting abuse or are actively trying to avoid abuse by being Good Jews—that they honestly do not understand the Evil Jews they call Zionists (who may or may not actually be Zionists) are the majority of the Jewish community.
And we despise you. We’re disgusted by you. Some of us are downright terrified of you. We see you as no better ideologically than the genocidal maniacs who have spent the last 3000 years murdering us in increasingly horrific ways. And I cannot fathom how you can see yourself as a good person or ally to Jews when the majority of the Jewish community fears and hates you as much as we do the literal Nazis.
I know you won’t, because the truth is that you do hate Jews just as much as the Nazis and everyone who came before them did, even if you deny or justify it—but you should be ashamed.
الليلة الأولى من رمضان و بلشت اشتباكات في الضفة الغربية و هاي المرة الثالثة الليلة اقتحم الاحتلال مخيم بلاطة في نابلس .
الليل طويل
Oh wow. This is really antisemitic, @iblewrichardspeck
You are deeply antisemitic person.
And guess what? Having a Jewish grandfather doesn’t change that.
Your knowledge of Jewish history and culture is nonexistent to the point that I won’t even bother to confront most of it.
I encourage my allies to step in and address your nonsense with reason and links to credible sources.
Two huge standout points of your lack of knowledge that I want to point out though:
Most Jews in Israel are NOT in fact European or Ashkenazi. Do literally one Google search.
“Jews have always had a right to safety in their homeland.” I want you to know that I am pretty well regarded as a person who keeps their cool in situations like this. So I want to be explicit that my ability to stay calm right now is an act of superhuman will. I want to scream at you and cry because of the amount of death and pain you are erasing with this outright, easily disproven lie. Jews do not and have not ever had safety in their homeland of ISRAEL. Nor have Jews ever had safety in any of the locations where we have made a home. Judaism and jewish life has never “thrived” anywhere, at least not for the last 2000+ years. We have always been a target of attack and displacement and genocide. Always. Without exception. The idea that Israel somehow took all the Jews of the Middle East away from their homes where they were peacefully chilling out is nonsense. The middle eastern (who are the majority btw) Jews in Israel came to Israel after being expelled from their nations of origin or murdered for refusing to leave. Poland? Yeah. It had a swell Jewish community about 1200 years ago. It’s a shame about the centuries of ghettoization and you know that pesky genocide you might have heard about. Ethiopia? You mean the place where Jews had to be smuggled out of by Israeli covert forces because of the danger they were in there?
I don’t know if I believe that your grandfather was Jewish. Maybe he was. Maybe you made him up to legitimize your own antisemitic views.
But if he was really Jewish, I’m sure he’s wildly disappointed in you.
I won’t be blocking you because I want you to see this and change your views in a deeply fundamental way. And I want you to apologize. I’m 99.99999999% sure you won’t. You’re too steeped in your hatred. But who knows. People can change. I hope you do. Because right now, your attitude, beliefs, and behavior are rancid. I will not be responding to further messages from you.
Allies or fellow Jews with bandwidth can take it from here. Adios. Shalom.
People are claiming Israel is blocking baby formula from Gaza. Do you know where this rumor comes from and is there any basis?
Hi Nonnie,
I searched through journalistic sources, and while I have found a few reports in Amrican media, which say that baby formula is hard to find in Gaza (which is no surprise if Hamas steals about 60% of all humanitarian aid entering Gaza (this was happening even before the war, that donations were being stolen by Hamas), in part to sell it to Palestinians for much higher prices (again, something that happened before this war as well), in part to produce anti-Israel propaganda, that allows Hamas to falsely claim Gazans are being deliberately starved (but divert the blame away from themselves), but as far as I can tell, there's no fact checked source that says anything about it being completely blocked. My guess is that this rumor is exactly what so many of the other anti-Israel ones are: a libel, meant to help demonize the Jewish state.
Where did this libel originate? It might be tied to the reports about the baby formula being hard to find, once again using demonizing hyperbole (stretching it from 'hard to find' to 'none is being brought in') and taking it out of context (leaving out that humanitarian aid in general, including baby formula, is hard to find in Gaza, because Hamas steals it). Another option is that they're simply relying on the horror of the story. I've found a few cases with the same claims about babies not having food / baby formula in Gaza dating back to 2017, 2010 and 2009.
It seems like COGAT, the unit in the IDF that exists solely in order to coordinate help for the Palestinians, has already heard about this rumor, and has posted its own date about this, which refutes the rumor and specifies how much baby formula has been allowed in, and that there are no restrictions on any humanitarian aid (posted Mar 21):
But what if people don't trust the IDF's word? Well, then how about that of organizations which are def pro-Palestinian, ones which have been asking for people's donations to provide Gazans with humanitarian aid, and who claim that they've delievered baby formula inside Gaza? Since Israel approves of anything going in, this couldn't have happened (or be posted about publicly) if Israel were blocking all baby formula from entering Gaza.
Or how about the word of the Jordanians, fellow Arabs, who reported that their air drops of humanitarian aid in Gaza include baby formula? And again, nothing gets air dropped in Gaza without Israel's approval.
I hope this helps!
(for all of my updates and ask replies regarding Israel, click here)
I’d never really gotten a chance to look before, but I had the urge to look at the AIDS quilt after remembering Duane Puryear, and I was just browsing around when one caught my eye in particular on block #2336.
I’m a sucker for the night sky, and upon further inspection…
Greg Kyper would have been 70 years old today, February 2nd 2024, if not for AIDS, and ohhhhh I’m gonna cry. I can't believe the chances of me stumbling upon his name today of all days. I'm going to try finding out more information about him and his life if possible.
I never met you Greg, but I love your quilt design. It's beautiful.
Twitter thread by Melissa Caruso about a labyrinthine magical bookstore in Syracuse, NY. Link to the first tweet in the thread; most pictures have image descriptions! Now here are the screenshots of that thread:
And then a hero of the labyrinthine magical bookstores of the world put all the bookstores that people listed in the replies on a map! (Google Maps link)
i will never not find it funny that the watermelon began as a symbol of Jewish self determination and Israeli nationhood in the 1940s. every time i see a self important goy comment a bunch of watermelon emojis on a post of a Jewish person existing I think “do they know they are using a symbol of Jewish indigineity and socialist/labor Zionism?”
A sign every artist and crafter should have on their site and window.
When I get my site up and running I’m putting this on the Commission/Payment page.
Accurate
Another quiz for if you were a fictional character how would your fandom treat you (if you think your life is too boring to have a fandom just think of yourself as living the domestic!au of some sci-fi or fantasy)
reblog with your results
HP-like LGBT Books (not written by a TERF)
In no particular order. These are only books I’ve read and enjoyed. There are more out there and I will add them to the list as I make my way through them.
1. The Grimoire of Grave Fates created by Hanna Alkaf & Margaret Owen and written by 18 diverse authors: several non-binary characters, a trans woman, two trans boys + some f/f and m/m. This is an incredible collaboration! The students investigate the murder of a close-minded professor at their magic school.
2. Simon Snow by Rainbow Rowell: m/m. This is the most famous one. I wouldn’t mind a TV adaptation, or even movies, but that sounds less likely.
3. A Hero at the End of the World by Erin Claiborne: m/m. This one is cute and funny. It doesn’t hurt that the cover art is gorgeous.
4. Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues by HS Valley: m/m (YA, but very sexual). Simon Snow meets Sex Education, with a fake baby assignment. Simply hilarious!
5. Three Meant To Be by MN Bennet: m/m + a trans boy and an ace girl. This is a magic school adult book, focused on a teacher, though the students are all very interesting too. I adore the magic system.
6. Gallowgate by KR Alexander: queer male protagonist (MG). This one is about learning how to hunt ghosts and has horror vibes.
7. Magic University by Cecilia Tan: m/f and m/m, as the protagonist is bisexual + some trans characters (erotica). This series is surprisingly my favourite, even though I’m very picky with erotica.
8. It Ends in Fire by Andrew Shvarts: m/f and f/f, as the protagonist is bisexual + a non-binary minor character. This takes place in a heroic fantasy setting. I love the magic system.
9. Scholars and Sorcery by Eleanor Beresford: f/f (novellas). This short series is super sweet. It’s mostly about life at the magic school.
10. Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey: f/f-ish (content warning: murder mystery about a dead queer woman). If you’re looking for something darker, go for this one.
11. [French] L'éveil des sorcières by Cordélia: lesbian major character (MG). This is another cute and funny one, with a lot of diversity. It hasn’t been translated so far, but I’ll keep you updated.
12. When the Letter Comes by Sara Fox: trans girl protagonist (short story). It’s a little sad at first, but it gets better. You can read it legally and for free here.
13. DIY by John Wiswell: queerplatonic m/nb (short story). It’s about climate change and capitalism and also has disability representation. You can read it legally and for free here.
14. My Name is Magic by Xan van Rooyen: f/nb + a major queer male character. I love that this story is inspired by Finnish folklore. There’s a strong focus on protecting nature as magic is being consumed too fast.
15. Trans Wizard Harriet Porber by Chuck Tingle: trans woman protagonist (weird erotica for a laugh). This is the biggest crack I’ve ever read, as well as the biggest F*** You to transphobia.
16. This Is How We Fly by Anna Meriano: the protagonist is questioning her gender identity + some non-binary characters and some f/f (non-magical). This is a novel about muggle quidditch, a co-ed sport where “the gender that a player identifies as is considered to be that player’s gender.”
17. Brooms written by Jasmine Walls and illustrated by Teo DuVall: some f/f + a trans woman major character (graphic novel). A group of diverse women take part in unsanctioned team broom races.
Writing Tips: The School Setting
The school setting trope is a narrative device that places the story's events within an educational institution. This trope capitalizes on the nostalgia of school life, leveraging the structured environment to explore a variety of themes, character dynamics, and conflicts.
Pros:
Familiarity: Readers easily grasp the setting, streamlining the introduction of complex plots.
Diverse Characters: Abundance of character types, from supportive friends to minor/major bullies to wizened mentors.
Natural Conflicts: Built-in elements like coming-of-age growth, exams, social dynamics, and extracurricular activities provide ample conflict.
Cons:
Formulaic: Due to the commonality of this setting, there's a potential for the narrative to become predictable.
Classroom Limitations: Often, the most interesting events occur outside the classroom during field trips or special events.
Contrived Stakes: The school, being a structured and safe environment, may struggle to convey a real sense of danger to the students.
Common School Tropes:
Late!: Scenarios involving characters running late.
Group Project: The teamwork and exploration of relationships through collaborative challenges.
Social Conformity: Exploring themes of individuality versus societal norms.
Prom Night: The buildup to and climax of a social event such as prom, as a backdrop for drama.
Academic Struggles: Plot points related to bad grades and their consequences.
Bullies: Delving into the complexities of bullying, from both students and teachers.
Sports and Games: The buildup to and climax of high-stakes events, as a backdrop for drama.
Vacation Time: Navigating challenges and relationships during vacation periods.
Detention: The conflicts and breaking of rules, leading up to detention.
Field Trips: Exploring the wider world and lore, while encountering conflict.
Tests: Showcasing the skill and growth of characters, while tackling the anxiety surrounding tests.
Social Structures: Examining the dynamics of school groups and hierarchies.
Graduation: Feel-good denouement, when the characters celebrate their successes and reflect on their journey together
Types of Bullies:
Goons: Unpleasant, hostile characters functioning as easy obstacles, typically following a Bigger Badder Bully.
Reasonable Bullies: Characters with legitimate reasons for their dislike of the protagonist, such as family rivalries or personal ambitions.
Villainous Bullies: Truly evil individuals collaborating with external threats or evil organizations for nefarious purposes.
Magic School Subgenre:
Adventure Within the Walls: The school itself becomes the focal point of the adventure.
Specialization in the Supercool: Schools where the subjects are about magic, monsters, superheroes, or even robots.
Wish Fulfillment: The reader is projected into a world beyond the mundane.
Trials and Tests: Incorporating trials, duels, and fights as rites of passage.
Secrecy and Intrigue: The school and its knowledge are usually secluded and hidden from the world.
Building an Alliance: The protagonist has to win over a diverse cast of characters to aid them in their fight against a great threat.
Rival from Nobility: One of the main antagonists is usually a scion of a high-status, wealthy family.
Outside Threat: The school is usually a focal point for a greater conflict taking place in the wider world. And comes under attack later in the story.
Outside Adventures: Characters sometimes leave the safety of the school for adventures in the wider world.
This is part of my Writing Tips series. Everyday I publish a writing tip to this blog.
I'm currently trying to world build a magical school for my fantasy realm. I'm having a hard time finding sources online. Any general advice for fantasy schools?
For starters, you want to have your magic system fleshed out really thoroughly. What good is teaching a bunch of kids how to use a magic system that you, the author, don't really know how it works, right!? If you haven't done this, you might check out my Brainstorming posts Here (Part 1) and Here (Part 2) to get started.
Beyond that, you need to think about some school basics:
Are all children educated in magic? Or only the most talented, the richest, or the poorest?
How does society at large feel about magic education and how does that impact the freedom and funds of the school?
(Related:) What kind of teachers are employed at the school? The best and brightest or the shlufs who couldn't make it in a "real" school? How does that affect the education of the students?
How does general education play into the lives of the students? Do they go to primary school first where they learn to read and write etc. or is that part of the their magic school curriculum?
How much danger is there in the day-to-day of the school? Is the magic difficult to use and therefore generally not a risk? Is it ubiquitous and therefore maintains some inherent balance? Is it difficult to use and therefore volatile and unpredictable?
What is the purpose of receiving a magic education and what do its students aspire to do after completing school?
I hope these help you out little bit. :)
Happy building!
I've been thinking about this for a couple of days now. It's a good question, but it has a lot of answers because its actually pretty complex. Mind you, a lot of this will be based on my own observations and experiences-I myself never went to college but instead spent 4 years of my life in the USAF. I will link to things that better explain the science to it, but generally speaking, its observations and personal experience and US/Western history. And I may not touch on it all because there is a LOT! Also, I do criticize aspects of Christianity though, this doesn't mean I hate Christianity or anything like that. Rather, I'm pointing out the flaws of it-there have absolutely been positive aspects to Christianity!
And, as a disclaimer-supporting Palestine isn't the issue. Palestine deserves its own state and with the rights of its citizens respected-or however the people there, Palestinian and Israeli, decide on how those 2 states will be, such as 2 state confederation, etc. They're the ones that ultimately decide, I'm just here to make sure everyone has their human rights respected. Its easier to say 2 state solution to get the idea across that I want both to exist and that I support however they set up their state(s).
No, rather, the issue is the means of which the younger generation (and that of my own, as we're the next age bracket up) claim helps support Palestine. And truthfully, its a mess of how/why we came to this place.
Christianity doesn't exactly allow for questioning nowadays-it wasn't always like this for the religion, but absolutely became so over time. And its gone in cycles as well. You get the severe hand of the Catholic Church for much of the Middle Ages or Protestant Church (like Puritans!) at times, reformations, then First Great Awakening to be followed by the Enlightenment (and for the record, many of the Founders of the US practiced a very different type of Christianity that would make Evangelicals scream). Then came the Second Great Awakening as a response to the Enlightenment, then the Third Great Awakening and Fourth Great Awakening (which may or may not actually count, but still had a lot of changes)...and well, US culture is a mix of Enlightenment, First, Second, Third and Fourth Great Awakenings along with bits from before that, with varying degrees of influence depending on the time period. Right now, we're dealing with the shit from the Fourth Great Awakening-like the rise of the Religious Right and apocalypse BS. You do still see pieces of prior awakenings, such as more social justice oriented churches and churches that look to be more universalist, but they're being drowned out by those of the Fourth Great Awakenings. Enlightenment still hangs on, but the Fourth is absolutely trying to destroy it as it consumes and destroys what's left of prior Awakenings.
So as you can see, Christianity does go through cycles of questioning but ends up defaulting back to being unquestioned. Which is a problem, on top of the antisemitism that's been a part of it for a . Enlightenment, while far from perfect, allowed questioning and tolerance for others as well as separation of Church and State.
But we're losing that as the Right gains ground and the Left gets more extreme to counter it (or not).
And because the 'don't question it' aspect is partly due to Christian thought, where your Priest/Pastor/ Reverend/etc is supposed to be the one who speaks for God's Word. They are supposed to know the ins and out, so what they say *must* be true and as servants of the Lord, they *must* be infallible or far closer to it then the rest of us sinners.
This unquestioning attitude on leaders leads into sin as its also reduced into a binary. You either are or are not. Once a sinner, always a sinner. You can never be cleansed of it. This absolutely has warped the social justice sphere in horrific ways. Purity tests, a hierarchy on who matters most and should get all the attention on, and more. If not a sinner, you are innocent and deserve nothing terrible. But if you are, well...
Ever wonder why there's such a rush to prove someone is a sinner when something terrible happens to that person instead of realizing that 'hey, that doesn't matter, what was done to them was awful?' Its easier to do that and preserve the power structure and people in control of it. My next point is as follows-people don't generally think of 'oh yeah I'm going to be evil'. Rather, they see themselves, their community, etc as good and thus what is done to sinners must be deserved. Its how terrible people that can woo a crowd have such voracious defenders. They confirm and say the right things-to whatever is considered right to that community and seem to do so without caring on the opinions of others-though truthfully when challenged, they do not handle it well. Unfortunately, too many consider that a hallmark of leadership, when leadership itself is complex. It is not the loudest asshole in the room that seems to say the right things.
Am I talking the Right? Or the Left? It applies to both actually, because its all shared overall cultural values. Someone could be the most anti Christian, pro human rights campaigner but still engage in this thinking. They didn't do the work of truly figuring out the more problematic aspects they learned; they just figured if they left Christianity and/or opposed it that they were good, forgetting that it affects damn near everything in the overall culture in many different ways. Or they were on the right, came to oppose it but still engage in mannerisms from there, because they didn't do the work of really deconstructing it.
Some of this, I see in my own age group. They will point out to how the US acted after 9/11 to argue on how badly the US acted and how Israel is acting right now. But they will forget on how social media has been deliberately fucked with-the Great Russian Interference on tumblr back for the 2016 election was an example-but far from the only example. It was chilling seeing how well they researched how to 'speak' to the groups they were looking to sway with propaganda. And that is repeating, right now. On this site and elsewhere, with the desired effects of antisemitism and Islamophobia being on the rise. And too many are not questioning it-not thinking 'why is this a random tweet and/or why is this written to deliberately make me mad?'
Several things have stuck with me from my time in the Air Force. One of which is this-brainwashing, as its is commonly known, doesn't exist. Rather, its because you accept it-most cases aren't from accepting it due to threats/acts of violence, but by simply not questioning your own bias over time.
Honestly, its pretty terrifying to know that you will never be immune to propaganda. Its hard to be aware of so much being thrown at you. Unfortunately, depending on where you lived, you may have received schooling on media literacy. I say unfortunately because it should be universally taught, but isn't. The cracks in the school system continue to worsen-I was made aware of recently that even in NYC, a progressive stronghold, the Holocaust isn't taught much and plenty of states don't mandate teaching about the Holocaust (a little over half don't but also read the survey article, it is interesting on that states that do teach end up with more people that deny it compared to states without mandatory teaching. ). This contrasts my own education from back in the early to mid 2000s, where we read the Diary of Anne Frank and Night, saw Schindler's List and pictures and discussions on what happened in the Holocaust.
I have a theory as to why it is strangely higher in states that teach it. We know that American history is unfortunately lacking at times and propaganda at others. What I suspect is those people who are very young and not exactly in the position to really think further on it, are confronted with 'hey this was also an important historical event and the US gov't fucked up' they immediately start disregarding anything that's true because one lie means all are lies. Add to that teens, due to brain development at the time, have very black and white thinking and its not helped by overall society Part of this is due to Christian thinking, but also due to factors of poor education, poverty and a general need for things to be simple because of the mental energy involved. One of the articles talks about climate change denial, but it can be extrapolated to other areas.
Now, I bring up brain development but its complex. Yes, the brain isn't completely developed until around age 25 (varies from person to person), however, a person doesn't magically become less impulsive, or more empathic and so on. You still need to have those traits nurtured and practiced prior. Unfortunately, this too has fallen into the binary thinking-where you have people truly saying anyone under 25 is 'literally a child' instead of examining the various stages of brain development and comparing/contrasting with age groups and more.
Now, let's talk about something else. The race for a spot in college and the absolute insanity teens must go through, not just to place a spot with testing, but also place in scholarships, loans, etc. Ever think about the origins of why students need extracurriculars? Its due to antisemitism-to keep Jewish students out. Its also why legacy admissions became a thing as it serves to keep the well to do in the student body. While Affirmative Action has helped some minorities and/or poor people into college, the threshold remains high due to well, extracurriculars cost money. and testing has its own problems. And some students may have to work part time to help their families, taking away from even having the option of it. That's also not accounting for racist/sexist/etc exclusion in certain extracurriculars that's slowly being corrected.
Add into that many take AP courses-which can be harder than the actual college course. You have to pay an amount as well to take the course/test, just for a shot at having completed it. While 3 and above is considered good, its up to the colleges on if they are willing to accept it in full or partial...or even at all.
Continuing on with the black and white thinking, I was often told to either go to college or flip burgers, with the burger flipping seen as a terrible thing. Obviously, I can point out how utterly classist that was now, but hearing that growing up that the only way to make something of yourself was to go to college? That can fuck with someone. I had friends that didn't have lunch because they were too busy with multiple AP classes and then would try to sneak a snack during their extracurriculars. I did take some AP classes, some I was great at and some I was very much not but I absolutely refused to do as they did.
Simply put, there is too much pressure on teens to get into college while colleges do the bare minimum to make themselves more accommodating. This means a lot of new young adults haven't spent their teen years finding out who exactly they want to be or having been taught critical thinking skills because that was given up to memorize facts for the many tests taken. Add to that many are just so damned tired trying to keep up and they also don't have the energy to try and work on those skills either. So we're working with at least two generations of grinders trying to get a spot for a better future, but losing out on critical aspects needed to prepare them to be emotionally stable adults while that spot continues to end up further and further from them as the debt piles up.
This makes them easy prey to fall into extremist thinking. I remember being full of a lot of passion at that age, to the point of feeling extremely deeply. I still feel deeply on things, but I've also settled down as I've gotten into being an adult and gaining experience as I age. Part of it is trying to carve out what is 'you' and what you believe in/stand for and trying to understand the new responsibilities gained as a new adult. And freaking out at the sudden lack of structure of college life compared to the highly structured school life.
Now let's add into social media and how there's algorithms in place to push you towards for extreme thoughts. This extreme thoughts can be from within the nation or outside. Combine that with the young adults not having critical thinking skills needed to properly engage with social media, the need to feel like one is doing the right thing and being on the 'right side of history', Christian thought and black and white thinking seeping in, and its a huge set up of deliberate, not deliberate and in between actions taken up to this point by various institutions that have led a good chunk of Gen Z and some Millennials to this point.
There is inexperience involved for sure, many of Gen Z were born after 9/11. However, its absolutely not solely due to that-there are so many factors at play here, along with just the general inexperience young adults have that are being taken advantage of. And, like I've mentioned, some in my own age group have also fallen into the trap. Their inexperience isn't so much due to age, its more due to general history. There's also an aspect of learned helplessness here for both groups due to the sheer number of BS with wars, the economy, pandemic, climate and how everything seems to just get worse.
Nontraditional news isn't completely bad I want to say as well; however there is a lot of it that absolutely is. Nontraditional news isn't held to the same standards as the traditional news is. Anyone can make a podcast, spout off absolute BS and have it take off because there's not much in the way of an integrity check. There's a damn good reason why there's the saying of 'a lie has already traveled around the world while the truth is still tying its shoe laces.' (Old) Conspiracy theories spread, the rise of AI related things has aided those in spreading fake news and divisions only get deeper. The rise of needing to be seen and heard because they're not being seen and heard in real life is also a factor, and explains why a lot of the activism ends up slacktivism and gets twisted into 'look how morally right I am being!' at the expense of the groups supposedly being championed. Social media being ubiquitous and damn near required for social networking doesn't help either as it promotes falling further into a hole by those that lack experience on how to navigate it.
Add into the Cultural Christian ideas of rally around a leader that spouts off the correct words and seems to be doing the right things to the point the leader replaces the ideals and warps them, the need for an apocashitstorm for there to be a 'truly perfect utopia' to come about at great cost to everyone but the people longing for it and the inability to admit wrongs for fear of losing the 'innocence' they had and instead becoming whatever the buzzword for bad person is. Its pretty dangerous. Its how you get people assuming the worst of you but at the same time wanting to do exactly what they think you do-for their noble causes of course.
Add also into the ever present antisemitism that goes unchallenged throughout all levels (and for far far longer than the US was the US) and general regret of US History (and promotion of said historical issues at expense of other areas with their own histories around the world!) on top of all that is how you get the extreme 'Hamas did nothing wrong! Those Israeli women, men and children deserved their rapes because they're settler colonizers!' Empathy is only for the innocent.
Its very easy to be empathic for the innocent, just like its easy to be a saint in paradise. But for those that aren't? Well that's asking too much, too much thinking about what your values actually mean and if you're truly living up to them. Nuance is a rare thing, a despised thing-unless it can be used to keep the 'innocent' innocent as they are deemed to never be allowed fault. Its how you get people praising Hamas and thinking they are liberators as well as claiming that what Hamas did wasn't actually what they did. Even if before they were saying those Israelis deserved it. ANYTHING to keep their group they claim to champion 'innocent/pure' and because they lack the ability to distinguish Hamas from Palestinian citizens and the Likud run Israeli gov't from the Israeli citizens, it reenforces this.
The point isn't justice at all; its people that want to be able to freely hate a group and feel justified in doing so and act out what violence they would like to do to their own enemies. Do they care about Hamas and their oppression of Palestinians? No, they don't and even fight back against factual accounts of Hamas oppressing Palestinians. There's also an extremely racist (and for Muslims, Islamophobic) fantasy at play-oh those people we don't consider white, they're going to butcher people, they can't help it, they're oppressed! Palestinians are a people, not a terror group like Hamas. Do some join with Hamas to commit horrific acts of violence against Israelis? Sure, just like some Israelis use their time in the IDF to cause as much harm to Palestinians. Doesn't mean all Palestinians or all Israelis are of one mind-rather, like any people that exists, there will be a lot of differences in opinion.
They hate Jewish and/or Israeli people far far more than any love they claim to have for Palestinians-if they even had any true positive feelings towards them to begin with. Everything I mentioned above (and I'm sure I missed some stuff!) is why the youngest age group as well as many in my own claim to support Palestine while not actually doing so.
Speaking of-here's charities that are working to end this war and have solutions to hopefully make a better future for Israelis and Palestinians.
Slowly realizing that I was taught twice as much about the bubonic plague than I was about the shoah. I feel like that's telling. We never learned anything about the shoah specifically, just that the axis and allied powers existed, that Pearl Harbor happened, and we won. Because those are, apparently, the only important parts of WWII
i’m a little anxious to send this not on anon but i saw one of your posts where a comment mentioned jewish conversion and you seemed to support it. my boyfriend is jewish and i would like to convert to judaism but a lot of the research i’ve done says that you can’t convert, you have to be born into it since it’s an ethno-religion. i know everyone has different beliefs about this but i worry i won’t be accepted
Hello tyblackthornsheadphones, welcome!
"my boyfriend is jewish and i would like to convert to judaism"
Oooh! Mozel tov! I'm always so happy to meet new people who want to join the Jewish community! <3
"a lot of the research i’ve done says that you can’t convert, you have to be born into it since it’s an ethno-religion"
Oh dear, I'm so sorry to hear that! D: There's so much misinformation being passed around online. :( Thankfully, I'm happy to report that those sources are incorrect: It IS possible to convert to Judaism. ^_^
Like any group, though, how friendly any given Jew is to potential Jewish converts depends on the individual and/or the group they belong in. Just as there's elitism and gatekeeping in every group of people ever (like high school cliques and video game circles--"you're not a REAL gamer unless X"), unfortunately you'll also find some snobbery, elitism, and gatekeeping in Judaism. :(
Though I think Rabbi Friedman has a very loving and accepting view of Jews by conversion. ^_^
The way I see it, the differing experiences of a "Jew-by-birth vs a Jew-by-conversion" can be comparable to an American citizen who was just born on American soil vs an American immigrant who had to go through a long and rigorous bureaucratic process to become an American citizen--they have to learn everything there is to know about American history, presidents, laws, customs, the legal system; spend a "probational period" living in America to become a naturalized citizen, etc.
(The Jewish religion used to be very conversion friendly, but that came to an end when Christianity and Islam became huge world powers who outlawed the Jewish community "tempting" good Christians or Muslims away from the One True Faith.
Jewish identity also used to be passed down from father to children in ancient times--as you'll see in the Torah--but that was changed by Hillel the Elder during the tyrannical reign of King Herod--yes, THAT King Herod! Hillel did this partly to give the children of Jewish mothers who were abandoned by their non-Jewish fathers a place in Jewish society, and he did this partly as a big old political "fuck you!" to King Herod, whose father was only nominally Jewish and his mother was a foreign gentile woman.)
Chabad is an Orthodox Jewish organization.
And here's a link from a Reform Judaism POV. ^_^
In my experience, Reform Jewish synagogues and organizations tend to be more accepting of and friendly to Jewish converts. (Though it's not universal! Sadly, there are snobs everywhere. D:)
So if I were you, I would just start with checking out some books on Judaism from your local library, attend Friday night or Saturday morning Shabbat services with your boyfriend (that's usually a time when non-Jewish guests attend).
If your local college has a Hillel or Chabad Jewish student organization, I would visit that too! They usually host fun events that are free and open to to all, especially students who're just interested in connecting with other Jewish students, and learning about Jewish identity. ^_^
In the meantime, I'd just take time to study and learn about Jewish history and culture just for fun.
I think Sam Aranow's "Jewish History" Youtube series is a very entertaining way to learn about Jewish history, from ancient to modern.
Unfortunately I have to go to work now, but if you have ANY other questions, please reach out to me! I LOVE sharing knowledge and resources about Judaism, especially to potential converts who show a genuine interest and curiosity.
(Jewish culture can be, in my opinion, not as accepting and welcoming of potential Jewish converts as they should be, and I want to make up the difference. ^_^ )
What about the Jews?
If you're a Palestinian peace activist who advocates for the destruction of Israel, then let me give you a little history lesson.
In the late 1940s, after the UN partition plan was a guaranteed outcome for the territory. Many Arab nations in north Africa and the middle east went through massive waves of pogroms which were supported by the governments of these nations. They kicked out the native Jewish minority of their nations in the 100s of 1000s. These Jews are known as "Mizrachi" Jews, which is a name for the Jews who lived in the middle east and north Africa, they are descendants of Jews who had lived in the middle east and north Africa.
These are the nations which kicked out their Jewish populations, and how many they brutally expelled after massive waves of pogroms:
Morocco: 18,000 Jews expelled
Algeria: approx. 140,000 Jews expelled
Tunisia: 103,500 Jews expelled
Libya: approx. 35,000 Jews expelled
Iraq: 100,000 Jews expelled
Syria: 30,000 Jews expelled
Yemen: 62,500 Jews expelled
Oman: 5,000 Jews expelled
Iran: 150,000 Jews expelled (10 remain today)
Egypt: 75,000 Jews expelled
Pakistan: 2,000 Jews expelled
Afghanistan: 5,000 (only 1 left)
Why is it only "Zionist atrocities" which you all try to spread false news about? Why do you turn a blind eye to the atrocities which the Arab nations committed?
As of today, 50% of Israel's population are Mizrachi and are descendants of middle eastern Jews. Therefore making the stereotype that Israel is a white colonialist state false.
Don't blame Israel for simply existing. Blame the rest of the middle east and north Africa for making it necessary for Israel to exist.
@elenajones23 first of all, who are you, a non Jew to lecture me about what my religion does or doesn’t allow? Who are you to tell me, as someone who doesn't practice the same religion, that I can or cannot do things?
The Torah isn’t a simple set of guidelines and commands, it’s far more complex than that. It has different interpritations, so saying the torah doesn't allow it is blatantly false. The name "Zion" (Promised land) is mentioned 154 times.
“It isn’t your land and it never was your land” bullshit.
We absolutely do have a land, if we don't, then why do we have holy sights in Jerusalem? Why are names like "Jaffa" and "Haifa" Hebrew?
The land of Israel is where my ancestors came from, it is where they lived, it is where they had a connection to, and it is where they suffered under the romans and were exiled.
We were never welcomed in Europe, we were never welcomed in the rest of the middle east.
These are ancient scrolls called the "Dead sea scrolls" which are a set of ancient Jewish writings dating from the 3rd century BCE.
This is all of what remains of our ancient temple, this is what it once was:
The first temple is Solomon's temple, the second one is Herod's temple, which was destroyed in 70CE by the romans. centuries later, the Muslim caliphates built the Al Aqsa mosque which was built on top of our temple mount. Today, the west wall is all we have left of this historic holy place.
The name "Palestine" was given to the land of Israel by roman colonisers who exiled most of us from the land of Israel, took many of us slaves, and scattered everyone else through western Europe (Some moved further east).
Now about the Nazis = Zionist argument. The Nazis originally made a deal with German Zionist Jews (The Haavara agreement) to bring about a mass migration from Germany to Israel, it should be mentioned that this was because Hitler and the Nazis wanted a Jew-Free Europe, not because the Nazis supported Zionism.
This deal was criticized by both Nazis and Zionists. Zionist criticised it because it made a deal with the devil, and the Nazis criticised it because it went against their philosophy.
The Nazis were extremely antizionist, the belief that they were Zionists is soviet cold war propaganda to demonise the state of Israel and the broader Jewish community. They believed that Jews were biologically incapable of running their own state and were too inferior. Hitler had a "Palestinian" friend (Amin al-Husseini) who campaigned in Berlin, fought for a Palestinian state, and even CONTRIBUTED TO THE HOLOCAUST. They also lead a boycott of Jewish businesses in "Palestine".
So, you're wrong. So very very wrong. You can try to lecture me about the history of my own people and religion all you want, but you're wrong.
Please, kindly fuck off and read a history book. Please attend a Synagogue service and learn more about our religion before you come spewing false bullshit about it.
links to help you actually learn and understand what happened in Israel on October 7
a site that collects the October 7th survivors' stories.
an Instagram profile that also collected survivors stories.
Yoseph Hadad - an Arab-Israeli who shows what it is like to be an Arab in Israel. also explains the situation.
Israel on Twitter - the official account of the state of Israel.
Stand With Us - a nonprofit organization that fights antisemitism.
4IL - an Instagram page for Hasbara (explanation).
Visit2Israel - explains, simplifies and updates on what is happening.
I do warn you - the stories are graphic, there will be graphic pictures. but this is the situation Israel is in, and there are so many stories to share that me, as a sole person here, just cannot bring you all on my own.
SHARE THIS PLEASE, LET THE WORLD KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO US
Key terms necessary for understanding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict : Part 1- Ancient Israel to the founding of modern Israel, Jewish terms
A/N: Hey! The results are in, and this is the topic my followers chose🫶 Writing this felt very much like retaking my high school history finals lol. Enjoy reading.
*These terms and definitions will be organized by topics, in chronological order. **If I have made a mistake or if you feel like I forgot something important- don’t hesitate to tell me in the comments. It is very hard to summarize thousands of years. *** Be respectful, I am human.
1. Key terms in Judaism and the connection to the land of Israel :
Israel and Judea- Were the two ancient Jewish kingdoms.
Zion ציון- Is one of the 70 biblical names for the city of Jerusalem. In fact, Jerusalem is referenced by this name in the bible over 150 times.
The word Zion is very much embedded into our culture: it is used in many prayers and Jewish texts written throughout Jewish history, songs etc.
Zion and the exile from it:
It is especially used when describing longing and the wanting of return to the land of Israel:
The most famous example that uses the word Zion is the biblical prayer from the book of Psalms, 137:
1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
תהילים פרק קלז א עַל נַהֲרוֹת, בָּבֶל--שָׁם יָשַׁבְנוּ, גַּם-בָּכִינוּ: בְּזָכְרֵנוּ, אֶת-צִיּוֹן.
This verse is an example of the longing for Israel: as it was written after the exile to Babylon.
*Yes, the funky Boney M song is based on this Psalms verse :) Coming full circle- It is also used in the official hymn of the modern state of Israel, Ha'Tikva. התקווה, written by Naftali Herz Imber. This word might sound familiar to you, as it is also the origin of the word "Zionism".
Zionism- is the notion that the Jewish people deserve to have a state of their own.
Semite- is a term for people relating to, or constituting a subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic language family:
Semite languages- are a group of ancient languages, that originated around the same time, in Africa and the Middle East- aka the neighboring countries of Israel.
The Semitic languages are: Hebrew and its other ancient dialects , Arabic, Amharic, Aramaic and more. Unfortunately , most of these are extinct and no longer spoken.
The languages that are still spoken to this very day are : Arabic, Amharic and Hebrew.
Some Hebrew Fun facts :
-While there are only estimated 8 million Hebrew speakers nowadays( most of them Israeli), Hebrew is considered a holy language in is spoken during prayer.
-Ancient Hebrew and modern Hebrew are very similar. So much so that if I were to time travel, I could have a decent conversation with my ancestors😊 (some pronunciations, grammar and words have changed, but it’s essential the same).
-Which cannot be done with Romanic languages or Celtic languages..
Antisemitism A\N: This word is getting its whole section because it simply deserves it. Nowadays, every time a Jewish person says something is antisemitic, they will usually be bombarded with mocking comments about how Jews like to call everything antisemitic. If had a nickel for every time I got those comments or an Arab person tried to troll me in the comment section by saying "I can't be antisemitic if I'm a Semite myself"... Let's make it clear (once again).
As I have explained before, the word Semite refers to a group of ethnicities. However, the word Antisemitic refers to Jewish hatred: "Antisemitism is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews.[2][3][4] This sentiment is a form of racism,[5][6] and a person who harbors it is called an antisemite. Though antisemitism is overwhelmingly perpetrated by non-Jews, it may occasionally be perpetrated by Jews in a phenomenon known as auto-antisemitism ".
TLDR: Don't be a Jerk and use antisemitic rhetoric, blood libels, and stereotypes... You don't get to choose if something is antisemitic or not, Jews do.
2. Modern Israel and its founding
The Knesset- Is the Israeli parliament consisting of 120 members, elected democratically every 4 years. Usually- there have been 5 elections in the last 5 years. It also currently has 36 ministers. Yes, that _IS_ a lot.
Kibbutz- "Kibbutz is a community where people voluntarily live and work together on a noncompetitive basis. The first kibbutzim were organized by idealistic young Zionists in the beginning of the 20th century."
As time moved on, starting in the 80s, many Kibbutzim struggled financially and closed down. Today, there are 265 Kibbutzim left, with approximately 200,000 residents. Less than 20% of them are communal.
Unfortunately today, the word Kibbutz has a different connotation:
British mandate- Yep, they colonized us too lol. After the first world war, Between 1917 and May 1948 (Israel was founded literally as soon as the mandate ended).
Fun fact- Today, there are still a few rules left from the British mandate In Israel (Most of them were updated or changed by Israeli law makers after it's founding, usually by the Knesset and the Supreme court of justice).
“Homa U’migdal” (חומה ומגדל Tower and stockade)- During the British mandate, Jewish settlements were built overnight due to a legal loophole still valid from the Ottoman rule. The loophole prevented the British from destroying the new settlement: "Homa U'Migdal is the name of an operation that the leaders of the Yishuv initiated in Palestine, during which 52 new settlements were founded. This operation was a response of the Yishuv to the 1936-1939 Arab Revolt and the restrictions the Mandatory authorities placed, both on the building of new Jewish settlements, and on the amount of Jewish immigrants allowed into Palestine. The building of each settlement began at night. First, the guard tower and the defense stockade were set up, so the operation was named “Tower and Stockade”. According to an old Ottoman law that was still valid during the Mandate period, the destroying of a building was not allowed after the roof had been erected. For this reason the British did not destroy the "Tower and Stockade" settlements which had not received building permits. "
The 2-state solution - The notion that the solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict should be two states for two people- one for Arabs and one for Jews.
Balfour's declaration- is the famous letter sent by then-British foreign secretary Lord Balfour to Lord Rothschild in 1917. In the letter, Lord Balfour stated that the British Empire would support the forming of a Jewish Zionist state in the land of Israel.
Peel Commission- was a community created in 1936 by the British rule during their Mandate over Israel. As the name suggests, the head of the Commity was Lord Peel. A suggestion for a Two-state solution was suggested to representatives of both Jews and Arabs. Unfortunately, the Arabs have refused it.
1947 Partition Plan- A partition plan suggested by the UN, that included another draft of the two-state solution, with different borders. The Arabs have refused it once more.
Declaration of Israel's Independence from Britain:
And so, as the British mandate ended on May 14th, 1948, the people's Council (that later served as the initial government of Israel) declared the formation of the modern state of Israel.
The day following the declaration, the Arabs in Israel revolted and with the help of 5 foreign armies that invaded Israel, tried to stop the formation of Israel: Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and Lebanon.
They failed and Israel was formed.
You can watch David Ben Gurion, head of the council (and Israel's future first prime minister) declare its formation/independence here.
PS- this was the flag of Palestine before the current one:
Sources:
-Semite languages pic: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Semitic-languages
-Kibbutz: * https://kibbutzulpan.org/about_kibbutz/ *https://www.hamichlol.org.il/%D7%A7%D7%99%D7%91%D7%95%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%9D_%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%9C (Hebrew)
-Homa U'Migdal" : http://www.zionistarchives.org.il/en/Pages/TowerStockade.aspx
UNRWA gets decimated by community notes, how long can they keep their mask on?
Links:
In a powerful opinion piece, the First Lady of Israel, Michal Herzog, expressed her disappointment towards international bodies, who have remained largely silent in the wake of the mass rapes and sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas terrorists on and since October 7th.
Apparently, it's:
#BelieveAllWomen...unless you're Israeli.
#MeToo...unless you're a Jew.
A brief History of Mizrahi Jews in Arabic countries and Their expulsion
A\N: While I am an Ashkenazi Jew, I have done A LOT of research, and have both Iraqi friends and relatives to corroborate this with. Also, I'm petty - an Iraqi user who comments regularly on my posts seems to forget about his own country's Jewish history... Well, I hope he forgot instead of the more likely reality: It seems like Arabic people nowadays aren't aware of Jewish history in their countries since they either killed to expelled them all. Thus is born the constant argument that all Jews originated in Europe and are merely settlers in the Middle East.
I realized that what may be obvious to me won't be obvious to others since I'm a history nerd who grew up in Israel with plenty of rich archeological evidence and resources surrounding me. I'm happy to make these posts in hopes of educating others and contributing my part to ending antisemitism and prejudice. ___________________
You might have seen the following picture in one of my previous posts:
It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. Unfortunately, in this case, it concludes hundreds of years of discrimination, violence, and exile for Mizrahi Jews. * It is important to note that numbers are slightly varied between sources, but the meaning is clear.
In a nutshell- all throughout history, the fate of Jewish people in countries where they weren't the religious majority was the same:
Discriminatory laws, blood libels, being blamed for disasters > violence & murder > Pogroms * > and eventually- exile or mass murder AKA ethnic cleansing \ genocide.
Pogrom- the term refers to violent attacks by local non-Jewish populations on Jews in the Russian Empire and in other countries.
Every Jewish community has its own Pogrom. While my side of the family might immediately think of the Kristallnacht or persecution & pogroms in Hungary, it is different for Jews from different backgrounds. You can read about a few cases of forced conversion to Islam here.
A brief History of the land of Israel
The land of Israel has always been considered a strategic passageway, and so many empires throughout history have conquered it:
* I simply cannot accurately write 3000+ years of Jewish history in the land of Israel. I found that this video summarizes it perfectly.
Exile from the land of Israel
Jews were exiled from the land of Israel numerous times since the Assyrian empire conquered Israel in 732 BCE, to what we call "the diaspora" גולה. It was not by choice and we were persecuted everywhere we went.
Jews were not allowed to legally return to Israel until 1948 when the British mandate over the land of Israel ended and Israel was formed. Yes, even during the Holocaust.
The Jewish answer to exile - Aliyah עליה There have been 5 waves of illegal immigration from all over the world to the land of Israel before 1948, recorded in modern times.
Chart taken from Wikipedia (their chart was the best I could find in English)
Forced Conversion
Whether in conquered Israel or in exile, Jews were often forced to convert to either Christianity or Islam. The choice was between conversion or death.
*You can read more about some of the forced conversion of Jews during history here and here.
First Case study- The last jew of Peki'in, Margalit Zinati
Peki'in is an ancient village in the upper Galilee, Northern Israel. Nowadays, its population is mostly Druze.
Peki'in has had a Jewish presence since the Second Temple period, until Arab riots in the 1930s*. Meet the remaining member of the Zinatis, the only family who returned. (aish.com)
*Read more on the Arab riots of the 1930s here and here. Margalit is currently the last Jew living in the village of Peki'in . She is the last direct descendent of the Zinati Cohen family. The Zinati family's origins are dated back to the Second Temple era. The former Jewish community of Peki'in maintained a presence there since the Second Temple period (516 BCE – 70 CE). That is when the polytheistic Persian Empire conquered the land of Israel. For reference- that was approximately 500 years before Jesus was even born! "During which the Second Temple stood in the city of Jerusalem. It began with the return to Zion and subsequent reconstruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, and ended with the First Jewish–Roman War and the Roman siege of Jerusalem." (Wikipedia)
As an adult, Margalit chose to not marry so she could stay in Peki'in and continue her family's Jewish legacy in Peki'in. She later became in charge of the ancient synagogue in the village and turned her basement into a visiting center \ museum of Jewish history in Peki'in- "House of Zinati". in 2018, she lit up a torch as part of Israel's 70th Independence Day Torch lighting ceremony (which is considered an honor given to influential and trailblazing people).
-Margalit Zinati pictured in the Peki'in Synagogue yard, 2016 Picture taken from Wikipedia, uploaded by Deror Avi.
Second Case study - Iraqi Jews (Babylonian Jews \ יְהוּדִים בָּבְלִים)
Iraqi Jews are one of the oldest documented Jewish communities living in the Middle East. It is estimated that they originated around 600 BC.ת
The Farhud الفرهود הפרהוד
Unfortunately, Iraqi Jewish history ended in the same pattern I've described earlier. The Farhud was the violent mass dispossession against the Jewish population of Baghdad, Iraq between 1-2 June 1941. was the pogrom or the "violent dispossession" that was carried out against the Jewish population of Baghdad, Iraq, on 1–2 June 1941, It immediately followed the British victory in the Anglo-Iraqi War.
Background for the Farhud:
WW2- At the time, many Arabic countries in the Middle East agreed with Nazi ideology.
History of violence towards Jews.
The Anglo-Iraqi War (2–31 May 1941) - caused rising tension, and as usual, it was turned on the Jews.
personal family ties to the Farhud My relative was born in 1939 in Iraq, to a big upper-class Jewish family. Unfortunately, the mass exile of Jews in the 1950s didn't skip her family: she was stripped of her belongings and exiled to Israel along with her family. In the 1950s there were approximately 140,000 Iraqi Jews. As of 2021, there are only 4 left.
----------------- Please feel free to add anything I missed in the notes. And as usual - remember I am a human being. If you cuss or harass me, I will block and report you.
______________
Online Sources: * https://www.israelhayom.co.il/article/865383 - Hebrew article, Title means "Sad ending to a magnificent history: Only 4 Jews left in Iraq".
What was the Farhud https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farhud
History of the Jewish community in Baghdad https://cojs.org/the_jewish_community_in_baghdad_in_the_eighteenth_century-_zvi_yehuda-_nehardea-_babylonian_jewry_heritage_center-_2003/
What are Pogroms?https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/pogroms?gclid=Cj0KCQiAkeSsBhDUARIsAK3tiedM7DuwIaSQX-kRxvXTgCDxN6-zqeo_DNNFgyanSYGyGOhwu_0vfrkaAg6REALw_wcB
The last Jew of Peki'in, Margalit Zinati https://aish.com/the-last-jew-of-pekiin/
Arab riots of 1930s- https://www.gov.il/en/Departments/General/ben_zvi_30 https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-1936-arab-riots
Israel's history from ancient times & timeline : https://www.travelingisrael.com/timeline-land-israel/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=iiUIWnU-Ofk
Second Temple era - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Temple_period
Forced conversion of Jews across history- https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt18mvnct.7?seq=4
https://academic.oup.com/book/32113/chapter-abstract/268043723?redirectedFrom=fulltext
Go back to where you came from, they said.
“Israel should be charged with war crimes!!”
But not Palestine? Not Hamas - the elected government of Gaza?
How about Russia? They bombed maternity wards and orphanages. Why aren’t the leftists demanding their war crime trial? The double standards are getting old.
Everything you complain about with Israel (if true) is exactly what Hamas and the Palestinians have been doing to them as well.
“Israel has wiped out entire families!” So did Hamas.
“Israel is bombing Gaza!” Palestine is bombing Israel (and, ironically, Gaza as well).
“An IDF soldier raped someone!” Hamas employed mass rape as a weapon of war against Israeli women.
“Israel is trying to wipe out Palestinians!” Hamas is trying to wipe out Jews.
We can keep going on this. The list goes on. Not only that, but multiple other countries have employed such tactics against their own people and other countries. Not a single cry for war crime trials.
They start war, we win war, they complain, we get human rights allegations, repeat.
Jew here with a friendly reminder that:
Criticizing Isreal ≠ antisemetic
Supporting Palestine ≠ antisemitic
Believing in the Free Palestine cause ≠ antisemitic
BUT ALSO
A random ass Jew just living their life oceans away has nothing to do with the Isreal-Palestine conflict
Palestinian Jews exist
Jews that support Palestine exist (I am one of them)
Calling out ACTUAL antisemitism ≠ supporting Isreal
Jew here with a friendly reminder that:
Criticizing Isreal ≠ antisemetic
Supporting Palestine ≠ antisemitic
Believing in the Free Palestine cause ≠ antisemitic
BUT ALSO
A random ass Jew just living their life oceans away has nothing to do with the Isreal-Palestine conflict
Palestinian Jews exist
Jews that support Palestine exist (I am one of them)
Calling out ACTUAL antisemitism ≠ supporting Isreal
There is a massive historical discourse issue when it comes to Israel-Palestine and yeah it pisses me off, firstly as a Jew, second as someone who is pursuing a degree in Jewish history.
You can see a part of it by looking at the historical narrative presented by a very popular source, DecolonizePalestine. This source has been shared widely by celebrities, by activists. It has been quoted to me on this website. It was even in the instagram bio of one of my TA's. It is considered a helpful and trustworthy source on Israel-Palestine.
The website has a Palestine 101 section, which includes this helpful module:
okay lets take a look:
I've never heard of the Peselet tablet, so let's do a quick google.
Huh. That's weird.
There actually is a 3,000 year old Egyptian tablet (stele) that talks about the levant though.
Oh no! Anyways. Lets move on:
I'm sorry but how do you mention the Assyrians without mentioning that they destroyed the ancient Kingdom of Israel. And the Persians without mentioning that they allowed for the end of the Babylonian exile and the building of the second Jewish temple in Jerusalem . And the Romans without mentioning what they named their province in the levant. Judea. This is where the name "Jew" comes from. There isn't a J in Hebrew.
wait the ottomans???? We already got to the Ottomans??? We just skipped literal centuries.
There's clearly a narrative being created here, not by the inclusion of historical facts, but rather the purposeful omission of historical facts. No serious scholar would be able to discuss the history of the levant and COMPLETELY LEAVE OUT THE JEWS.
This is the dominant historical narrative in discourse on Israel-Palestine and it is harmful. Not only because its untrue, but because it involves the destruction of Jewish history and the right of Jews to steward our own history.
Where we come from is and has always been a huge part of Jewish identity. I cannot stress this enough. It is wrong and yes, it is antisemitic to warp and erase Jewish history for your own political purposes.
and here's what gets me: it is completely unnecessary.
You can recognize all the horrors that the zionist movement and Israel has inflicted upon Palestinians without denying Jewish history. You can demand Israel take accountability and stop what it is doing without denying Jewish history. You can advocate for Palestinian freedom, statehood and self determination, without denying Jewish history.
But people don't want to *just* do that. In the minds of many, the only acceptable Free Palestine is a Palestine Free of Jews or Jewish autonomy.
And for that, fuck you. Palestinians are indigenous to the levant. They know their history and where they come from. Jews are indigenous to the levant. We know our history and where we come from.
No one is going anywhere.
Be better.
Free Palestine and Am Yisrael Chai.