Passover
of 2009 was significantly different from those I had celebrated before.
Three months earlier, the main square at Cambridge had been filled with
vocal anti-Israel protesters condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza.
The
freezing January day did not prevent the 100-strong crowd from
gathering, equipped with banners, megaphones and fashionable Keffiyas. I
bumped into them cycling on my way home. There were atheists, Muslims,
environmentalists, gays, socialists, women’s rights activists, some
Jews, and other “concerned individuals.” I also spotted the
self-proclaimed “politically indifferent” Belgian who studied physics
and lived on my campus, who had joined, as he told me, to “support basic
human rights.”
I
asked a couple of them what they knew about the current situation in
Gaza. The answers included different combinations of the words “death”
“children” and “occupation” expressed with resolve. From a group of
passionate activists, chanting to “end the occupation,” I learned that
Jerusalem was a city in occupied Gaza, that the blockade on Ramallah
must end, and that, in general, Palestine must be liberated from the
Jewish colonization that started in 1948 because of European post-WWII
guilt. Upon realizing that I was Israeli, they asked me to join them.
After all, it wasn’t my fault I possessed an Israeli passport, and, as
they reassured me, I could still act reasonably by joining their just
cause.
Tremulous
months followed. Demonstrations eased, but not the sentiment. Israel was
brought up at almost every discussion concerning instability and
unfairness. Often, vacuous assertions lacking basic facts of the Middle
East conflict were expressed by fellow students and academics. Too
often, they were accompanied by a patronizing tone. The toxic cocktail
of ignorance and arrogance shifted into a higher gear. If I wanted to
have a meaningful and honest discussion of reality it was away from the
classroom and the academic clique, perhaps with the college caretakers,
shopkeepers at Cambridge or a few friends instead. I wondered with
dismay what it meant to be a student at Cambridge University in the UK
of 2009. Read the rest on: The Times of Israel
No comments:
Post a Comment