by AD Nachalo
As honest and well meaning people are fed a steady diet of imperialist views though the reporting of the ruling class, The Worker offers another point of view—one aligned with the resistance of the oppressed.
On the question of “equalizing violence” between the oppressed and their oppressors:
Emotion can get twisted when it comes to the loss of life. It leads some to condemn all violence universally. Before doing this, it is important to ask not only about the degree of violence but the conditions which answer the question of why the violence takes place. Israeli violence exists to conquer and occupy land, to subjugate a people and to defend US political interests in the region. Sometimes this takes on a religious veneer but in essence is political. Palestinian violence on the other hand is resistance to occupation, resistance to living in the worst conditions of an open air prison, restricted and monitored all the time, resistance to extreme poverty. Likewise, resistance can take on a religious appearance but is also essentially political. Why the settlements get attacked is a far different matter than why the US government funnels billions to support a militarized state subjugating a people. Palestinian armed struggle is for the national liberation and self-determination of the people against occupation and oppression.
On the portrayal of the Palestinian people as victims:
Witnessing the violence of the Zionists for some provokes feelings of hopelessness and even pity, but in all it should provoke condemnation. Nonetheless the Palestinians are not hapless victims, but are fighters for their freedom and against imperialism. There is honor and dignity there. There is glory and courage in the unlimited resistance of the Palestinian people, whose resistance inspires people around the world to stand up and condemn oppression. The crimes and tyranny of the Israeli occupation expose the injustice of the entire imperialist system and express exactly why this system needs to be destroyed. As long as oppression exists, it is better to be a resistor than a victim.
Long live the heroic resistance of the Palestinian people!
