From the River to the Sea

About 2 weeks after the events of October 7th, I decided to write a poem for Palestine. So angry at seeing the extreme violence inflicted on all Palestinians living in Gaza. A place where about half the population are children. My wife is from Jabalia, in northern Gaza. Her family all lived there and had businesses there before the present conflict started. Their homes and businesses have all been destroyed. They immediately, fled to Gaza City, where they usually take refuge during the violent bombing campaigns against Gaza, but then they were told by Israeli authorities to go to the south of Gaza,. They have been forced to relocate on 8 occasions and sometimes relocating under bombing and drone attacks. Feeling helpless and angry I turned to writing poems about Palestine, about the present violence, the hypocrisy and double standards practised by the West. 75 soon to be 76 years of violence by an ethno-religious apartheid state, that practises segregation based on whether the people living between the river to the sea are Jewish or not. As a life time advocate of non-violence, I am not a pacifist. I’m a fighter and I believe in fighting but without causing physical harm to other human beings. I am an anti-racist, anti-apartheid, anti-sexist and an advocate for equal rights, human rights and freedom of speech and expression. Since I have started posting my poems on TikTok and sharing on Facebook I have often been called an anti-Semite, by pro-Zionists. It seems this is the typical 'go to card' used against anybody standing up for Palestine and Palestinian rights. Nothing could be further from the truth and I can honestly say if Jews were being abused and victims of discrimination because of their Jewishness, I would be fighting on their side. What happened to the Jewish people during the Shoah, is a disgrace to the human race. What is happening to the Palestinians today not only in Gaza, but also in the West Bank, and East Jerusalem is a disgrace to humanity too! And this is not new, but has been going on for more than 75 years. I wonder how the Nakba would have been seen by the world, if there were mobile phones and social media in 1947/48?