An Israeli shares her thoughts on #GreatReturnMarch

 “LIFE AND HOPE ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BORDER”

Julia Chaitin, PhD, is holding the sign on the right. She lives on a kibbutz near the Gaza Strip and is affiliated with the School of Social Work, Sapir College, “Other Voice” and “Friendship across Borders“. Julia wrote the following on the first day of the #GreatReturnMarch.

How did we get here???

Imperviousness, imperviousness, imperviousness

Indifference, indifference, indifference

Hatred, hatred, hatred

Fear, fear, fear

What did we think???

That if we continue to imprison them

They would sit quietly

What did we think???

That if we control them from the land, sea and air

And we do nothing to show them

That we understand that people cannot be caged up without hope

For anything

They would sit quietly forever?

What did we think???

You’re right, you’re right, you’re right

The Hamas is not innocent

You’re right, you’re very right

They are responsible for the lives of the people they control

But it doesn’t excuse us from our responsibility to act humanely and to stop punishing an entire population with a collective punishment

The Gazans are demonstrating and some are violently demonstrating

Because we pushed them, and pushed, and pushed them more to the wall

We made sure that they would see that there was no sign of future for Gaza

That there is a reason to live

We made sure to pressure them more, and more

And we really helped push them more into the arms of the Hamas

That also abuses them

And prevents them from having the most basic things that all people deserve

You are right – Israel is not the only guilty party

There is enough blame to go around

The Hamas

Egypt, too

The rest of the world

That simply ignores them and what is happening in Gaza

And meanwhile

16 Palestinians killed and hundreds wounded

And there’s still time for more…

Perhaps they would not have gone to the fence full of rage if for years we had treated Gaza in a completely different way?

As our neighbor?

As a place to create ties, at least, of respectful neighbors?

If we understood that year after year after year

Of planting the understanding that Gaza is a place without hope and without a future?

That the rage and the frustration will try to break down the fences of despair and desperation?

Enough

It is simply enough

We have had enough

All of the violence and killing and range and power has proved only one thing

We are in a dark, sad, scary, awful, unnecessary, bad place

Very bad place

All of us

Now we have to change direction

180 degrees

To stop with believing in the scenario that violence and control and closure

Will solve the problem

The only solution that has a chance is a civil program that includes employment, education, health services and development

A program that promises the people in Gaza that they will have water, electricity, medicines

We are all in the abyss

About face

Retreat

Now