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I am often accused of being anti-Israel and hostile towards the Jewish people. Nothing could be further from the truth. I support the rights of Israelis to live in peace and security, but not at the expense of the Palestinians. Why do we constantly hear about Israel's need for 'security', as though that justifies erecting walls, checkpoints and barriers? Why is the world told to believe, that the Palestinians should only accept peace on Israel's terms? I've come to the sad realization, that many in the West simply don't like Arabs or Palestinians very much and therefore believe, that we have the right to treat them as we wish.”
Description
“My Israel Question” examines the ways, in which the Palestinians have become 'unpeople', seemingly unworthy of sympathy or understanding. (The term: ‘unpeople’ was adopted to describe victims of Western state-sponsored terrorism). 'Our' people are important, but 'they' are not. This narrative has been constructed through a complex web of media, politics and lobbying, and has resulted in a skewed perspective on the defining conflict of our time. This is a plea for mutual respect and understanding. One of the most powerful messages I heard over and over again during my travels around Israel and Palestine was, that neither side thought the other cared about its stories or suffering. This made reconciliation next to impossible. In an age of political unilateralism-an arrogant concept, deliberately designed to subjugate one people to another-we must move past using de-humanization and de-legitimization as weapons to be wielded against the Palestinians. I support the state of Israel and believe in its existence. This book examines, how much Zionism-the ideology of Jewish nationalism-is to blame for this intractable conflict. There must be a way for Israel to exist securely while allowing justice for the Palestinian people. A sustainable future for Israel and the Palestinians is my central concern.
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