#if you think me calling for the safety of palestinian people is in any way an antisemitic stance get out of my fucking page

[kidovna]

You refuse to give Noah the power yet he's the one who brings life to Will Byers You are a two faced hypocrite and I hope you die you antisemite and homopobe

yeah i bet you love seeing people die

[mashpotatoe]

im a white jew, i was born in israel,

ive lived there all my life and was brought up in an environment that fosters racism driven by nationalism, nationalism driven by racism.

in israel, they teach you jews and muslims (though usually, they just say arabs) have always been enemies, the same way the US deems the entire middle east as a inherent war zone, ridding them of the responsibility for perpetuating war in thst region.

they tell you "were the fair and humane side who strives for peace! its the arabs who never accept the offer!"

i remember the first time i began doubting that sentiment was in fourth grade, when we were having a discussion in class about the character of Saul from the Torah. the teacher was talking about how Saul, the first monarch of the Kingdom of Israel, used to fight the Philistines, and when she added that the Philistines were the natural enemy of the Israelites, she asked the class what group of people is their modern equivalent to which everyone very eagerly replied "Arabs!" and nevermind that there in that same class sat two arab boys, one of whom sat next to me, who i looked at and thought "but he isnt my enemy? hes just a boy in my class."

they teach you to hate arabs. sometimes they say it outright. sometimes they say it more carefully, or make a distinction between good and bad arabs, those who are with us and those who are against us.

in a state based on the idea of (white) jewish supremacy, they teach you jews are naturally superior. they use the conspiratorial narrative of "jews controlling the world" to their favor, giving their own watered down explanation for why antisemitism exists, saying that it must be driven by jealousy.

the zionist movement always used antisemitism to its advantage, either for reinforcing the notion of jewish supremacy or appealing to the real pain and trauma of generations, people who survived the holocaust, connecting them to stolen land where they are "guaranteed" safety ergo granting "justification" for the suffering of others.

its using peoples real pain that makes fear mongering so effective, and when the israeli population grows up being told all of their neighboring countries want to kill them, they quickly get defensive of the "only land where they can feel safe", but the only explanation ever provided for Why these neighboring countries are considered enemies is because theyre arabs.

and when it comes to palestine, it isnt even recognized as a country, nor identity. just a threat. ive talked to many people who are genuinely unaware of the occupation, and they arent willing to believe it either, because the media narrative has successfully shifted the blame on hamas. because "how could it be us? we want peace! its the terrorists who make us look bad! and their children, they grow up to be antisemites*, might as well get rid of them too!" they never stop to think what environment these children must grow up in to develop these "radical" ideas.

* what they mean by antisemite is really just antizionist, but the term anti/zionist isnt practiced in local dialect, being a zionist is treated as a given

any jew who stands against israels oppression is dubbed a self hating jew, but the biggest contributors to antisemitism is the people in charge of an ethnostate, because at any moment they could decide who is not white enough to be jewish, who is too jewish to be white, who stood against the current coalition government and who is an obedient dog.

israelis arent a monolith, but many of them have been won over, convinced its an "us v them" situation, when in reality it could never be the "us" that "loses"

the israeli government was waiting for an event like the massacre on the seventh of october to declare war, to have the so called "right to defend itself", so they could initiate the final steps of an ethnic genocide and displace, if not kill, all remaining palestinians. under the guise of bringing peace.

it isnt too late to call for a permanent ceasefire, to end the occupation.

please contact your representatives, attend protests and rallies if you are able. palestine will be free, and the flowers will rise again.

[centrally-unplanned]

This article about Hamas's strategic planning in the lead up to the October assault was at least a partial mind-changer for me. So far I had been viewing Hamas as executing a "bait" attack on Israel for international & domestic political reasons. Kill enough Israelis, and in particular take some hostages, to force Israel to invade Gaza; which you want because that will re-inflame radicalism, tank Israel's growing coziness with Arab states like the Gulf Monarchies, and keep the Palestine Question front-and-center on people's agendas.

What it was not about was achieving any sense of a military victory; Hamas did not think they would be able to defeat the IDF on the field, or even truly hold them back. They thought they would do better than they have in defending Gaza, to be honest, but the goal wasn't to "win" in that way or anything. The actions of Israel, in their inflamed bloodlust, would be the fulcrum of progress for Hamas. It was the most logical interpretation of their strategy, because tbh its working, Israel's strategy void has bungled this war at every level. Of course if it is "worth it" is a completely separate question - Hamas is playing a game from deep, deep in the red, if you aren't going to fold and pack it up from that position these are the hail mary plays you make.

This article, a long (and sometimes overly windy) interview with two career members of the Palestinian governing orgs (primarily Fatah), shines a very different light on that. They outline that over the past ~decade, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar coalesced power around his own faction of highly fundamentalist adherents that convinced itself that divine favor was shining on them and they would be able to actually defeat Israel in the field. The most compelling evidence for this is a conference they held planning the post-conquest occupation of Israel:

So detailed were the plans that participants in the conference began to draw up list of all the properties in Israel and appointed representatives to deal with the assets that would be seized by Hamas. "We have a registry of the numbers of Israeli apartments and institutions, educational institutions and schools, gas stations, power stations and sewage systems, and we have no choice but to get ready to manage them," Obeid told the conference.

They even called people up to ask if they would take the job of governor of this-of-that province! This was not a bored-Friday white paper by any means. They discussed defensive plans and counter-offensives like that was on the table. Sinwar outlined conquest as the goal.

If we accept this premise, it naturally lends itself to the question "okay how did they get the rest of Hamas to go along with this?" Because Hamas is not all These Kinds of People, its a governing state that does politics on the international stage after all. One of the reasons I leaned towards my interpretation was that, for the past ~decade, Hamas has actually been doing a glam-up rebranding of the org to make it more moderate & respectable in international eyes. The 2017 Charter Revision is the biggest example, which included say disavowing the idea that this was a religious war (distinguishing between zionism & judaism), and loosely admitting to the idea that they could recognize Israel as a country if terms were met. Actions like these show actors who are pretty level-headed. Were they inauthentic? Did they change their mind?

Maybe a bit, but its more than they aren't the same people. Right alongside the build-up to the October attack was a purging & sidelining of whole swaths of Hamas leadership. Many were not even informed of the attack - though they knew something was coming. Apparently it leaked on October 2nd, and a bunch of leaders just immediately fled the Strip for safety. This one is the most amusing:

Haniyeh's eldest son took a similar course of action. Around midday on October 2, Abed Haniyeh chaired a meeting of the Palestinian sports committee, which is headed by the minister of sports, Jibril Rajoub. Suddenly he received a phone call, left the room for a few minutes and then returned, pale and confused. He immediately informed the committee – whose members were in a Zoom conference with counterparts in the West Bank – that he had to leave for the Rafah crossing straightaway, as he had just learned that his wife had to undergo fertility treatment in the United Arab Emirates. (He was lying.) He granted full power of attorney to his deputy and left the Gaza Strip hurriedly.

That is one way to duck out of a pointless meeting, take notes people!

So instead of my hail mary politics play, what you have is a story of an institutional coup by a radical faction - which for extremist resistance groups is an ever-present threat. None of this means the "bait" strategy part is wrong of course, that was definitely still the point - but this argument here claims that goal of the bait was to bring the IDF into Gaza where it could be defeated in the field with their extensive fortifications, and then presumably inspire others like Hezbollah to jump on the moment of weakness and besiege Israel proper.

So....is this true? There are two gigantic caveats on this article: the first is that the people being interviewed do not primarily work for Hamas - they are members of Fatah, the leading faction of the PLO. They hate Hamas, they are not Hamas leaders themselves, they have every incentive to paint Hamas as irredeemable. You really can't take this story simply at their word. But they aren't outsiders - they hate Hamas but they work with them constantly, that is how it works, people rotate around in the Palestine orgs. They have met personally and worked with dozens of Hamas leaders; one of them was even called to be offered one of those post-war occupation governorships! (He said no lol) So its a big red flag but not a damning one. And things like the fleeing leaders, the conference on the occupation, those all 100% happened. They released press on it, they weren't hiding it.

The second caveat is that its just really not uncommon for large organizations, particularly extremist ones, to engage in mainly performative actions at scale. The South Korean government still maintains a department that plans for the administration of North Korea for example! Not totally useless ofc, but it writes exactly the reports you think it does that get put in a bin and never touched. Sometimes its appeasing internal factions, sometimes its PR, sometimes its just institutional inertia. Its absolutely believable that Hamas would make a big plan for how they would conquer Israel because otherwise...what do you tell the commanders, exactly? Why are they fighting again? A significant percentage of the lower-level fighters need that belief, so you give it to them. While certainly there is a fundamentalist faction in Hamas, are they ones winning? Or are they just another faction being played against?

I don't see enough evidence to say, but there is enough to make me pause. I'm not sold on it in the end, that is my final conclusion. I think more brains than Sinwar were involved in this and they had more realistic aspirations. And yet the level of commitment and disorganization does suggest that at least some of what was pushing events forward was a group immune to doubts being at the wheel. Certainly interested in researching more.

[decolonize-the-everything]

i’m curious. what is your solution instead of voting for Harris? I 100% agree with you that her/her party/the system she will work in are facist, have committed countless atrocities against their own people and others, all of it. I really do agree with you. I guess what I don’t understand is what other realistic option there is right now. Not voting for Harris or voting independent is statistically highly likely to bring about a trump presidency, which would be (of the two) expontentially more harmful for our communities here in America and across the world, including palestine.

I guess what I’m trying to get at is it’s true you can’t put the fire out from inside the house. participating in a poisoned system isn’t going to be the cure. But is there really a realistic way to get outside of the house? Is there really a way to secure funding, land, and resources for sustainable practices entirely separate from the colonial state we live in? And would putting effort toward those methods bring about more peace and freedom to marginalized communities - including those in Palestine, India, Bangladesh, Sudan, and countless others, than working with the cards the system gave us? Or at least, not working against them? Global politics govern our lives whether we want them to or not. I don’t think it’s possible to separate our situation from that, nor from our nation’s political system. I feel it is nigh impossible to attempt any sort of reform without working with the colonial state, as horrible as it may be.

Would love to hear your thoughts. I’ve read many of your posts and am just curious as to your direct response to this question - I do not intend to take away from all the other work you’ve done in attempting to educate and establish your point. Thank you for your time and I wish you health.

You are ready to go Offline it seems. I think a lot of people are honestly. A lot of people seem stuck on voting being the option with no clue for what else to do.

And since you are asking in good faith, I'll answer in good faith.

You are asking all of the right questions. So much that I can not answer this ask in detail. You'll have to seek out more specific information yourself. I can really only point you in the right direction.

That said let me run through what I can say in bullet points rq.

All of this is very rough and vague. that's intended. You gotta find the step by step guides on your own.

There's no guarantee kamala will win and so you shouldn't conduct yourself as if her winning is relevant to fighting fascism. Likewise, her losing shouldn't be seen as a crushing defeat, long term it means nothing.

Is there away to get outside the house? Yeah. The Black Panthers were experts at this and there is no shortage of literature, podcasts, and analysis about their work for you to learn from. It's why they were so dangerous. They were efficiently and quickly building an entirely new system that didn't need capitalism, cops, or politicians to function

This bullet point is also about the Black Panthers like I really want to drill it in that the extent of mutual aid, organization, community health, and community safety they provided was LITERALLY revolutionary and is the legitimate blueprint. Pls pls pls pls learn about their praxis. It even happened relatively modern/recent times so its truly invaluable knowledge to have for the person who wants to know what to do Right Now. Palestinian and global solidarity in general was also Very important to them. have u stressed them enough? I think I have

Build these groups of people (sometimes called pods) like branches in different areas. Expand to cross-state mutual aid networks. Those same connections/people shutting down highways, military ports, etc. Imagine the power of an organized people. That's how we as Americans will earn the trust of the global community. Putting our money where our mouths are when it comes to direct action and community care.

There's a REASON they made taking down organizations like The Black Panthers a top priority and never allowed them to get that far. The potential power they had was to topple the empire. And the state knew it.

You gotta be willing to get uncomfortable and be told you're wrong. Every time it happens itll be with love, I assure you. This next step of work requires trust and vulnerability and growth like you wouldn't believe. You will fuck up or misstep or speak over someone. Learn to take those hits to your ego and not take it personally now.

I mean it. Being online and learning is a whole different ball game than direct action/praxis. Nobody is going to coddle your hurt feelings and they won't invite you back if youre constantly just creating more labor for the people around you. They expect you to hold yourself accountable. People who do this work are very much not babysitters. It's high-key why it's it's hard for cops to infiltrate [redacted] circles

From Anarchist Direct Actions: A Challenge for Law Enforcement

That's not to say it doesn't happen. It does. Which is another reason people do not fuck around with the company they keep when it comes to offline praxis.

Here are a few books Im trying to read rn that seem relevant to this ask, if anyone else has something else/better to rec to anon, please do 💗

Also gonna link these because I can

There are no upcoming dates but linking this anyway because it's worth considering that you should train for certain kinds of direct action

[crumb]

please tell me you guys watched that video Noah Schnapp put out trying to backtrack and save his pathetic career. Please listen very carefully to the language and words he uses. He's choosing his wording VERY carefully in order to save his career and try to pacify those who support Palestine without actually denouncing genocide or zionism. "I feel my thoughts and beliefs have been so far misconstrued..." babe you were yelling from ig post to ig post about being pro israel, calling Palestinians terrorists, and being a proud zionist. How has that been misconstrued?? "I only want peace and safety and security for all innocent people affected by this conflict" He makes sure to use the qualifier 'innocent' several times in the video when referring to Palestinians, victims of a genocide not a conflict. But as we know, zionists don't see Palestinians as innocent so who is he talking about? This kind of tentative language helps him try to appear like he actually cares about Palestine while still condemning hamas without addressing the actual root of the issue—israel and the IOF. "We all hope for the same things..." Do we? You're a zionist. Zionism is settler colonialism and based in white supremacy. Please be more specific on what you hope for. "...That being, those innocent people being held hostage in Gaza be returned to their families. And equally hope for an end to the loss of innocent life in Palestine..." Zionists LOVE to go on and on about the hostages without mentioning the very real danger those hostages face from israel and the IOF bombs themselves. Israel is carpet bombing Palestine indiscriminately when they very much have the tech to make extremely detailed and targeted attacks. Did you see the way they targeted the specific apartment unit in Lebanon? In Gaza they're wiping out whole city blocks. Israel and the IOF don't actually care about the hostages. If they did they wouldn't be razing Gaza and boasting about their plans to use the land for beach condos. If israel and the IOF actually cared about israelis, why are they basically using the Hannibal Directive? Especially at the music festival on October 7th where the IOF killed a number of their own civilians. If israel cared about the hostages, why aren't they willing to release the hundreds of Palestinian hostages they have who are being jailed illegally and without charges? 'oh but they did! They released some during the pause so they could get hamas to release some israeli hostages' yeah and then the IOF rounded up and captured more Palestinians than they released that very same day. "...I think anyone with any ounce of humanity would hope for an end to the hostility on both sides. I stand against any killing of any innocent people" Once again with the manipulative qualifiers 'both sides' and 'innocent people'. How can you expect an occupied people who have been living through apartheid and genocide for 75 years to not eventually fight back? To not understand why October 7th happened you have to be either completely uneducated about even the most basic history of Palestine and/or so deeply entrenched in propaganda and denial that it doesn't even matter if you do know about the history because you truly believe you deserve an ethnostate on a piece of land that has inhabited several diverse groups over thousands of years. It was never a land of 1 singular homogeneous group. To want it to be that, is actually insane.

[spacelazarwolf]

y’all i found it, i found the post that originated the claim that i’m a ZionistTM and it’s even more ridiculous than i expected.

—————————————

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this is, of course, the same person who labeled me a MisogynistTM for making a half baked joke reblog basically saying “jewish standards of masculinity are different than white western standards of masculinity” then cited orthodox judaism, a community i’m not a part of, as why Actually The Jewish Community Is Horrifically Misogynistic And Bad (as if i haven’t faced misogyny from jewish cis men before???????)

anyway, my post in this screenshot didn’t once mention israel. it didn’t mention zionism. it was talking about antisemitism. i turned off reblogs because people were making it about zionism and israel, which was derailing my original point. i set a specific boundary and people kept crossing it, so i turned reblogs off and blocked people who wouldn’t leave it alone. absolutely nothing about that could possibly indicate that i’m a zionist unless you think that diaspora jews setting boundaries about being forced into a conversation about israel, especially one where we are essentially being blamed for the antisemitism we face because of the government of a country we don’t even live in and have no control over (there’s a phrase that, it’s called dual loyalty and it’s been getting jews killed for decades) or if you think simply talking about the history of antisemitism and current rising levels of antisemitism is somehow “zionist propaganda” in which case you might want to get your head out of your ass and question why you’re agreeing with literal nazis. also bonus points for this person literally just blatantly blaming jews in the tags for the rise in antisemitism because we’re apparently not being antizionist enough to deserve basic human decency and safety! not even trying to hide it anymore huh!

and of course it worked like a charm bc now, months later, you have people saying this:

“the jew is trying to disguise himself as one of you to trick you!!!!!! he is actually evil and trying to manipulate you to further his evil (((zionist))) plans!!!!!!!!!! beware!!!!!!!!!!!” which is literally just repackaged antisemitic tropes that are centuries old. i’ve never interacted with the person in this screenshot in my entire life, and yet they seem to think they have insider knowledge into my Evil Zionist Plans to infiltrate the community and spread Zionist Propaganda because they interacted with one gentile witch that threw a hissy fit about being told not to be antisemitic in discourse about gentiles appropriating lillith. this gentile decided that every single jew who disagreed with them was a zionist, and when i told them it was antisemitic as fuck to call any jew they disagree with a zionist they went on about me being a “raging zionist” and “faking being queer” for DAYS. so it’s not a mystery where the person in this screenshot got the “ooh scary (((zionist))) pretending to be queer and trans to spread his evil (((zionist))) propaganda” rhetoric from. it’s word-for-word from the gentile witch who was pissed about fucking LILLITH DISCOURSE.

bc the thing is, these ppl don’t actually care if i’m a zionist. if they did, they would be engaging with what i’ve said (which is practically nothing because i knew the second the word israel touched my blog that this would happen — which is why i didn’t want people going on and on about israel on a post about antisemitism). they know that labeling a jew a zionist is an immediate death sentence in progressive circles. they know it’s the easiest way to discredit a jew you don’t like. because it doesn’t matter how many times you say “no, i’m not” you will be forever tainted in the eyes of gentiles by that accusation. that’s why they made the accusation in the first place. and so i will continue to not share any of my thoughts or opinions other than “i’m pro palestinian liberation” and “i’m not a zionist” and people will ignore that to play yet another game of Zionist Telephone to target a jew they don’t like. it’s not the first time it’s happened, to me or in general, and it won’t be the last time. i just hope people seeing this and reading this will help people understand how fucked up and antisemitic it is.

so yeah. if you see accusations floating around that i’m a zionist, this is where it came from. a situation that is textbook dual loyalty, being punished for setting boundaries on my own blog, and people who hate trans men jumping at the chance to demonize one with one of the easiest tricks in the book as soon as they see he’s also jewish. the fact i keep having to address this when the origin of the rumor is literally just antisemitism should heavily inform how seriously you take random claims online that a jew is a zionist. most of the time it’s just blatant antisemitism, and very often it’s a way to silence an unrelated conversation that person was trying to have.

[odinsblog]

“I think there is a simpler explanation to the tragedy and the barbarism on October the 7th, which is that you cannot indefinitely contain a group of people under military occupation for decades and expect that there won't be violence. There is violence in the Middle East, and the root cause of that violence is an illegal military occupation that is now in what, it's 57th year in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. And this is not just me saying this.

I mean, people like General Shlomo Brom, one of Israel's most famous military strategists, says, the oppressed will rise against the oppressor because it's absurd to hope that Israel can indefinitely contain with its military might millions of Palestinians who claim the right to a free, normal life. That is the statement of Shlomo Brom.

It's not true that the previous Gaza conflicts were all started by Hamas. Some were, but not all of them. Ceasefires have been broken on both sides and that's been well documented by multiple neutral observers and international observers.

But just on the broader point, Israel was never done with Gaza. This myth that they pulled out all the settlers and the occupation ended, first of all, under international law, Gaza is still occupied.

The Israelis control most of the land borders, all of the naval waters, all of the airspace. You tell me a country in the world that would accept that, any kind of country that you would call independent or sovereign. The Israelis even control the population register in Gaza, which means if you're born in Gaza, the Israelis are the ones who register you in control.

All of the information about your birth, life, and death. So this idea that Gaza was free, it was not free. And the boycott, the siege, I mean, it was not defensive.

Again, multiple human rights groups, including Israeli human rights groups like Gisha have said over the years, that the boycott was not defensive, that it was arbitrary, that it was cruel. Items like pasta, coriander, right? These are items that were banned at certain points going into Gaza.

Even now, David Miliband, the former British Foreign Minister, head of the International Rescue Committee, went on CNN this week to point out that dual-use items are being blocked going into Gaza. Entire aid trucks are being turned away because there's a scissors in them. A pair of scissors is inside a truck.

For medical purposes, the entire truck is turned away. For years now, the people in Gaza have been blockaded, besieged. The UN said it would be unlivable years ago.

We're now in 2024. It's certainly unlivable now. So no, I don't believe the Israeli narrative.

And one last thing, let's say everything Israel said was true. That still does not justify the collective punishment of 2.2 million people, half of whom are children, and who are now in the midst of one of the worst famines in living memory, according to the experts.

[…]

I've been very, very, very critical of Hamas. I've been critical of Hamas for decades. I've been critical of Hamas since October the 7th.

I was critical of Hamas on October the 7th. So no, I'm not sparing in my criticism of Hamas, but the missing context here, of course, is that we don't fund Hamas. I'm not responsible for Hamas.

I am responsible for the famine in Gaza. I am responsible for the killing of 30,000 people in Gaza because my taxes paid for it. The United States government is funding one side of this conflict.

The United States does not fund Hamas, last time I checked. So this idea that we are either fund them or protect them with a UN veto or arm Hamas, I don't think we send arms to Hamas, we do to Israel. Therefore, that is the focus of my journalism.

And by the way, yes, the focus of my journalism right now is on criticism of Israel because the rest of the US media has completely failed on this issue, has dropped the ball. I mean, I can go through The New York Times, The Washington Post, and show the exact opposite, pieces that are providing cover and safety for the Israeli narrative, including in absurd headlines where we go out of our way to use the passive voice and never cite that Israel is responsible for bombing a hospital or Israel is responsible for bombing a refugee camp. So I'm trying to do a little bit of correction on my end with this new media organization.

But look, Hamas is a brutal group. What it did on October the 7th was pure terror. They killed innocents, they abducted innocent babies as hostages into the war crime.

But none of that justifies what Israel is doing right now. And nor are we responsible for what Hamas is doing. But we are, in New York and across the country, sadly, we are responsible for the crimes that Israel is carrying out.

And that's the point I'm trying to make.”

—Mehdi Hasan

[fairuzfan]

i’ve seen so many people simply claim that jewish palestinians point blank do not exist and it’s a fundamental misunderstanding of judaism/jewish history to claim they do… 🫥 deeply exhausting takes on this website

That's the thing is that it's just a blatant rewrite of history. And I'm not saying this to tokenize Jewish Palestinians or anything or make them a construct, it's just as someone who wonders at what point "Palestinian" ends and what point "Jewish" begins or vise versa. Like it's a question of identity. If I decide, myself, that I want to convert to judiasm... well right now, I can't as Palestinians aren't allowed to convert which is weird as hell, but if I could and wanted to — am I giving up a part of identity and switching it out for another one? Am I allowed to keep both identities together? If so, how do I fit into my community at large? What decides me, a 3rd generation refugee who has never been to Palestine, as "Palestinian" enough? Someone can deny my Palestinian heritage because there are arbitrary definitions being put in place without the consultation of all community members.

Like what's the point of this separation? I genuinely don't see a reason beyond segregation purposes. Some people say that it's to keep Jewish people safe (which I don't believe but to go along with this argument), But that safety relies on segregation and division of a society. Which obviously no real safety can occur, but also like you can't lie and say that it's something it's not. You can't say a society that makes distinctions based on identity legally is in any way democratic or just for all people for that matter. Because even if there are efforts to make people equal, when you have to say "Palestinians and Jews are equal..." Well you just straight up named the two groups you think have a difference between each other. That implicitly requires the reader to perceive a divide.

And you can argue, "let's just call everyone Israeli and make no distinctions between Palestinian and Jewish people," but Palestinians in Israel would never agree to that unilaterally, even if we are operating on a two state solution (which will never happen but for arguments sake). They'd rather not abandon their cultural identification. And even then, when the society is built of Jewish supremacy with the express purpose of erasing Palestinians codified in their founding documents, is that equality, knowing an indigenous population had to give up their identity to subscribe to perceived peace? Isn't that inherently violent and anti-equality?

Indiginiety, in Palestine, as i dont feel confident to speak on other peoples cultures and struggles, has to do with your relationship to colonialism as well as the land. For me, an indigenous person who has suffered the effects of displacement of colonialism and who regularly watches from afar as their land gets tormented, to hear that the only way I can go back to visit that land is to deny my centuries worth of ancestors buried on PALESTINIAN land, then I'd be incredibly heartbroken. This is even from my own perspective, which I consider the least important in my family line. My grandmother should be able to see her father's burial place without worrying about whether or not she's considered Palestinian or fully colonized as Israeli. My mother should be able to stroll the lands she's always heard stories about without worrying that the very essense of her personhood, the thing shes been denied her entire life having to grow up in refugee camp, as a palestinian is being denied in totality at the end of her struggle. People in refugee camps should be able to go back without worrying about where they fall in the world hierarchies of weirdly defined terms.

So like what's the real purpose with this distinction, exactly?? Any sort of society which operates on some basis of understanding that it is "for" a specific group of people and not anyone else is inherently flawed.

And like, again, Jewish Palestinians are a demographic that exist, I'm not saying this as a gotcha or construct, I am asking this for myself who has stakes in the matter of how this question is answered and dealt with in this larger framework. Would I stop being Palestinian if I decide one day to convert to judiasm? Am I "Palestinian enough" to receive the right of return based on the definitions of Palestinians you come up with in an Israeli society? If I'm excluded in any way, then yeah, I'm going to be angry about it. Most people would be. The issue is that I don't see a way to go about answering these questions without inevitably excluding someone or some group, if not in the definition, in the ways we form our communities after the fact.

[notyouraryang0dd3ss]

hi, indian anon here ( I think I used the ⏳️) ig you can say I'm an ex swiftie, but in the sense that I was never exposed to western music until evermore and I listened to it and loved it. I never engaged with the fandom or anything, and didn't even know all these things taylor did, and I thought taylor was a decent person because of the documentary. This was until ofc, the matty healy incident which opened my eyes to her behavior, but idky I felt like I couldn't openly dislike her. Everyone in my school was obsessed with her and if you're a girl, and you hated her, or even disliked her, you were a pick me, and I didn't wanna get hated on more by my classmates (long story there). The last straw for me was prolly when 1989 tv was released (after the mh incident I just called myself a swiftie cuz I liked her earlier work) and I had joined an online swiftie group chat, and the people there were so vile and hateful. I remember saying it's wrong hating on harry styles for cheating on her cuz she did the same, or that Joe alwyn is just a regular dude, and so are all her other exes, except prolly matty and the John Mayor guy for dating a 19 y/o (SHE ALSO DATED MINORS THO??? no one talked about this shit) and I mentioned that she's not god and that she has done bad things, and the gc, which had 50 active members everyday, collectively not only hated on me, but also these people had access to my private insta acc. My face, my friends, my address, they knew it all. It was so scary, and while I have been in plenty of toxic fandoms before (my first death threats were by the hp fandom, which I've left long back), I actually felt threatened. It actually felt like a cult, and it was scary until my insta acc got shut down (idky), and the ppl couldn't find me anymore. The swiftie fandom is weird at best, and potential criminals at worst, because wtf. They don't have any sort of individual thinking, and if someone does, they will find a way to shut it down. Even now, when I interact with a swiftie and taylor Swift comes up, and I say I don't like her, their behavior is just like the ones online. Ik ppl get more confidence to do bad things online cuz of anonymity, but swifties are the same irl, too. They completely believe it is okay to treat ppl terribly, harass and spread disgusting rumors and even doxx a Palestinian woman and give her details to Isreali organization. Like that actually happened. I regret that I didn't leave the fandom sooner because I can't believe I was associated with something like this. Ik celebrities make mistakes, and that fandoms always have one toxic portion, but this is too much.

Sorry for the long rant tho 😅

- ⏳️

sorry it took me a while to respond, there is SO MUCH HAPPENING in this ask. like 3 diff asks rolled into one omfg

1. peer pressured into “continuing” to like taylor swift you are a different kind of victim im so sorry you went through that (and all to prevent you from being bullied…im so sorry)

2. THE SWIFTIE GROUPCHAT: that is horrible and TERRIFYING. all you did was practice critical thinking and you feared for your SAFETY. their reactions are not logical nor rational and speak to how dangerous her fanbase is.

if you feel like you cannot call out your fave for their behavior without your safety being threatened, that is not a fanbase, that is a cult. i think we should actually did a venn diagram of swifties and cults we’d have a perfect circle.

3. SWIFTIES IRL: this is so true about how they behave. ive had friends tell me theyre scared of saying they hate taylor IRL cause of the backlash they’d receive. THAT IS NOT NORMAL. even when BTS was at their peak ppl never felt threatened by the ARMY to that point 😭

you NEED to send more info/links/ss about the doxxed palestinian. i need the #SwiftiesforPalestine to see wtf their mutuals are doing. that is ABHORRENT behavior. that poor woman!

thank you sm for this ask, u are truly one of god’s strongest soldiers cause wtf!!!! is wrong!!!! with swifties!!!!!

(p.s. if you are a repeat anon go ahead and sign off your asks with an emoji so i can keep track! thank you!)

[edenfenixblogs]

Why do I post so much about antisemitism?

I post about it exactly as often as I experience it

People think antisemitism isn’t real

People think antisemitism isn’t that bad

People think antisemitism is justifiable as long as it is directed toward “bad” Jews. Like any other form of bigotry, it is always bad. Candace Owens has terrible anti-Black, extremely racist opinions. It’s still not OK to hurl racist insults at her. Isis and Hamas are terrorist organizatjons committing terrible crimes against humanity while invoking Islam . It’s still not ok to insult Islam while talking about them or to be racist and Islamophobic toward Muslims or Arabs. Netanyahu is an actual monster whose actions are destroying lives in Palestine, Israel, and worldwide. Jewish West Bank settlers are being extremely hostile, racist, and terrible. It’s still not ok to use antisemitic conspiracies, tropes, or insults against them. Ever. And it’s certainly not ok to use them against ordinary civilians who happen to share a race or religion with the worst people who share those identities.

I want to show all the ways antisemitism hurts.

I want to show how the damage from antisemitism lingers long after the first moment its experienced

I want people to understand that even if I don’t support Netanyahu or the Likud government or the broad actions of the IDF or the indiscriminate bombing of Palestine or the subjugation of Palestinians (and to be very clear—I do not support these things) I’m still allowed to be upset about the global hatred toward Israel right now based solely on the fact that I am Jewish. To say that makes me a supporter of colonialism or genocide is antisemitic. Why? Because half of the Jews in the entire world live in Israel. If half the Muslims in the entire world lived in America or half the Christians in the entire world lived in Japan, then everyone started calling all Christians or Muslims in that country evil/colonizers/oppressors and saying that they should lose protection and citizenship from those places, then it would make sense for all Muslims or Christians around the world to be very upset by that. Not because the Muslims or Christians in those nations are always perfect. But because, hey, seeing that people are perfectly ok condemning half everyone with whom you share a religion will cause you to be sad. And empathetic. And because obviously condemning that many people for anything as if they are all equally responsible is fundamentally wrong. Especially if your only basis for that condemnation is someone’s religion and where they live.

My trauma response is to fawn. To be aggressively kind and complimentary to show I’m not a threat. That I don’t deserve to be hated. That I promise I’m not worth your aggression. This is unhealthy for me personally. This is a bad way to live. This is a disservice to my fellow Jews who don’t deserve to experience antisemitism, regardless of any of their other actions. Instead, I am laying my pain bare for you all to see. I am using my pain to educate you. I am using my desire to help you to keep me patient while I try to educate you while experiencing an endless barrage of hatred all day every day. That hatred is not all violent or aggressive. Very often that hatred is neglect, erasure, and the revocation of societal privileges until I behave in an acceptable manner. But sometimes it is aggressive and violent as well.

People say that I am making a genocide “all about me,” but I’m not. You are. Why do your actions in preventing and fighting an ethnic cleansing on the other side of the world involve causing me emotional pain, social isolation, and ethnoreligous erasure? The problem isn’t that I’m speaking up. It’s that you’re too busy speaking over me to listen to what I’m saying and to stop being harmful.

Because I have the emotional capacity to be patient and to engage when many of my Jewish peers do not. I have the position of relative safety where I can post about these things without facing actual physical harm. Many of my Jewish peers do not. While I would never speak on behalf of other Jews’ opinions, I will certainly speak FOR my fellow Jews. For the dignity, respect, safety, love, and community they all deserve.

Because when this conflict is over or even just calmed down enough to not be at the top of the zeitgeist anymore, I don’t want any of you to have the excuse of saying you didn’t know what you were doing or the harm you were causing. You know. I’m telling you. Repeatedly.

Because despite everything I’ve just written, I know most of you won’t even listen until I confirm that I do support Palestinian self determination, citizenship, equality, and indigeneity. Which I do. I support all those things. I shouldn’t have to in order to avoid antisemitism though.

Because most people in my life have pulled away in this time and if I don’t share my pain here I’ll explode.

Because I have nobody else non-Jewish to share this with. You’ve isolated me. I’m alone. You did this. I could have been marching with you. But you hate me too much to let me fight for a cause we both believe in alongside you. And you aren’t even aware you hate me at all, because it’s so ingrained in you.

[biggayarsonsbiggaytumble]

listen im absolutely positive that there are antisemites in the antizionism movement (because its likely that antisemites can be in literally ANY large and diverse group of people) BUT i seriously do not believe its the epidemic that a worrying amount of jumblr wants you to believe. in fact, zionists (not jews, but zionists who happen to be jews) have a way worse problem with anti-palestinian racism and islamophobia.

seriously, i hear all the time that anti-jewish rhetoric is everywhere but scrolling through the latest in the antisemitism tag is literally just zionist calling people antisemites for even daring to bring up the destruction and death that the settler colony of israel has caused.

criticizing and condemning israel is not antisemitism. we are not criticizing jewish people. the colonizers HAPPEN to be jewish but they are not evil because they're jewish, its because they are murdering people and destroying an entire culture of people who have lived there long before israeli settlers came. they haven't made any headway in "defeating Hamas" like they said they're doing and look at all of the destruction. look at the advertisements they are already releasing for houses built on top of the rubble of people's homes. people who are either dead or using a ripped up tent that isn't even safe from the bombs. meanwhile every Israeli ive seen "so affected" by this is sitting in nice air conditioned buildings and having get togethers with family and food.

i would ask my fellow jews who are not convinced by me to imagine if this was happening to us, but it already is! there are so many jewish Palestinians being forced from their homes to make way for settlers that do not have roots in that land. the idf is also killing so many jewish people, those who disagree and those who just happen to be in the indiscriminate crossfire.

zionism is not good for jewish people. zionism is fundamentally an answer to the Jewish Question. they do not want us to reside in their communities. they dont want to think of the jews and our safety and instead are more content to kill two birds with one stone: put all the Jews in a place where we dont have to worry about them or have to accommodate or accept them AND get rid of all those brown people we hate so much. hey, and if we help them with the ethnostate, we can abuse them politically to get what we want as well!

im antizionist because i am against being used by those who don't have my best interest in mind. im antizionist because ive been to the settler colony of israel and the anti-palestinian racism and islamophobia was suffocating and disturbing. im antizionist because im also native american and this is a story ive heard so many times before, this story is in my blood and in my skin and i know how it ends. i don't want it to end that way.

please have some empathy and open your eyes. see what is happening to your fellow human beings (something that has happened to us as a people that still wounds us to this day) and stop using your identity as a weapon against others when its unjust. i know its hard to criticize Israel because its such an ingrained part of our identity as jews. i used to be a zionist because i truly believed that was my land. but it isnt. it never will be. it belongs to Palestine.

[burningchandelier]

I think I’m ready to write about what happened at the Thursday show on Tuesday in Boston.

After Many Eyes, a very drunk man started screaming in a hostile and aggressive way in the ear of a woman I was standing next to. He had been looking over her shoulder and saw the word “Zionist,” to which he took offense.

Okay. I’m an America Jew. I was brought up in a family that left Israel because they did not want my brother to serve in the IDF. I also have a knee-jerk reaction when I see that word. It makes me worry because a lot of the time it is used to paint a wide brush and excuse Jew hate.

In this instance, the man who was yelling was completely offensive. He would not take a breath. He was gesturing so wildly that he was actually hitting this woman.

I called security over and explained what was going on. I switched places with the woman who was being harassed. Security finally got involved and removed the guy. It went on for way too long before he was kicked out.

It turned out that this woman is Palestinian. She lived in a refugee camp as a child. She knows more than most of us what is going on. She was able to enjoy the rest of the show safely, but we were both looking over our shoulders for the rest of the show.

I wrote to Geoff to see if there was any chance that she could meet him or maybe just get a signed pick or something. It seemed like something he would want to step in and help with. He liked the message, but obviously, he had other things going on.

When the show ended, we were both justifiably concerned about her safety. Thursday’s merch guy was one of the only people working the show we interacted with who acted like an actual human being about the incident. He was so kind to us both and outraged by what happened. He gave us a safe place to stand.

Security didn’t even agree to escort us to the car. The one guard who agreed was a very small woman who was willing to help after she clocked out. They weren’t even going to pay her!

We thanked her, but decided to wait instead. While we waited, we had a great conversation and found so much common ground.

To my delight, but not surprise, Geoff did come out and greet her. It was late, it was cold, and his voice was going, but he still took the time to say hello. This is the kind of kindness and care that I have come to trust Geoff Rickly to show to his fans.

I am glad to have made a new friend in this awesome and strong woman. It was a big event with a lot of emotions, but ultimately I am reminded that the energy you put into the universe comes back to you, sometimes not in ways you expect.

I hope that my new friend can have a better time at our next show together.

[beardedmrbean]

hey quick question look up jewish expulsions and massacres in all the countries immediately bordering Israel. Look up how many Jew live in Yemen. I support Palestinian freedom, safety, and their right to live - I currently support a two state solution because none of the people advocating for a one-state solution have convinced me that it would be best for any of the people involved. But I think pretty much everyone in the Knesset rn should be hanged for crimes against humanity. But you CANNOT pretend that if someone waved a magic wand and the IDF vanished along with other tools of oppression, that there isn't a problem with Hamas and their "kill all jews" charter (which they changed to look prettier only recently) along with other factions who would want to kill Jews either for revenge or for more power or just because of antisemitism.

I'm going to specify - I don't think there is any inherent Palestinian bloodlust or whatever crock of shit a lot of Zionists peddle. I think that Israeli control of the region clearly models what happens when you have one ethnic group in power over another - I think the human evil we see from Israelis committing atrocities against Palestinians is exactly what we would see if the situation reversed. I don't buy that Palestinians are uniquely savage OR uniquely peaceful. "They just want a land in which to live in peace, and they're willing to fight for it but once they have it there would be no reason for violence" perfectly describes Jews fleeing the Holocaust to try to settle Palestine, and we can see where that logic ends. The myth of a perfectly peaceful pre-Israel Palestine is also not actually the prettiest picture.

I will also clarify that I don't think that 2 ethnic groups can't coexist in one nation as a general rule. I just think that in a region shaped by violence for so long, and such extreme violence right up to now, it is much harder to do so. I think its human nature that when things are so violent, most people aren't going to spend energy making sure they're not being prejudicial, both because energy can be better spent either on survival or joy with your own community, and also because it often feels like your prejudice is keeping you safe, or is proven every time One Of Them attacks One Of You. There are plenty of ways they can try to bridge the gaps, but I don't think that "dissolve Israel immediately and completely" accomplishes any of that

Ya, they're gone from pretty much every MENA nation there is or at least at a handful of their previous population, forced expulsions will do that to your population.

As for the palestenian population, to some degree I think they were ok to stay in Israel as it formed they'd just need to accept Israeli citizenship, there's some issues like the Sheikh Jarrah thing from a few years back that kicked off a short war, Muslim family got evicted from a home they'd been squatting in since before the formation of the country of Israel, people that owned the property had the receipt and deed from when the Ottomans still existed.

Folks still called that stealing their home. I imagine a whole bunch of that happened early on, someone's family had purchased a home of some sort with plans to move there but politics and eventually a war got in the way of that and such.

I would love to see the palestenian types free from the various terror groups that keep starting wars and stealing all the resources meant to aid the standard every day person.

As for the multicultural thing, there's 2 million arabs living in Israel who owing to the fact that they're arabs never need to sign up for military service, where as most every single Jewish citizen does and generally speaking they get along well enough and are even friends.

And to address the ethnic issue

These guys mostly just have 'being Jewish' in common with each other, if they can go and fit in there should be easy enough for anyone that isn't of a mind to start trouble.

If the arabs that identify as palestenian want to stay balkanized that's fine, just stop trying to kill the people that want to live in peace.

(still love the story of the Kaifeng Jews, wild stuff and makes for a good read)

[beatrice-otter]

On the subject of Israel, Palestine, genocide, and the International Criminal Court

First, all people, regardless of religion or ethnicity or other factor, deserve to be able to live in peace and safety without persecution.

Second, Hamas is a terrorist organization that (if it were powerful enough, which it is currently not) would absolutely murder every single Jew in the world. They have said this. They have committed unspeakable crimes and done great evil. But Hamas does not speak for all or even most Palestinians.

Third, Israel's violence in Gaza and the West Bank is a genocide. Benjamin Netanyahu and his faction would absolutely murder every single Palestinian if they can, and unlike Hamas they have the capacity they might be able to do it. And Netanyahu's policies (and those his faction of Israeli politicians pushed for decades ago) led very directly to both the suffering of Palestinians and to Hamas gaining power and influence. They did this because they wanted an excuse for genocide. But there is a longstanding and vocal Israeli opposition to Netanyahu's policies; he does not speak for all Israelis any more than Hamas speaks for all Palestinians. (And he certainly doesn't speak for all Jews.)

Fourth, way too many people have been taking sides--by which I mean, picking a team and deciding they're the good guys and the other guys are evil--and using that as an excuse for antisemitism and antimuslim hate. Which is only going to make the world a worse place and make it harder to stop the violence and bring a true, lasting, and just peace. Israel committing genocide doesn't retroactively make Hamas' terrorism good, and Hamas' terrorism doesn't justify Israel's genocide.

Which brings me to my complex feelings about the trial for genocide. Do I believe Israel is committing genocide? Yeah. Do I believe that genocide is wrong and should be stopped? Yeah. Do I believe that genocide should be exposed for what it is? Yeah. Do I believe that regimes which perpetrate genocide should face consequences for it? Yeah.

But why is Israel the only nation being brought up on charges for genocide? There are a lot of other nations committing genocide right now as we speak. And you could say "well, China is too powerful to be brought to justice for what it's doing to the Uyghurs" and you'd be right about that. But what about Myanmar? Sudan? Azerbaijan? Those nations are much weaker than Israel, and surely it would be easier to bring them to trial. And they deserve it at least as much as Israel for the genocide they are committing as we speak. But they're not on trial. Israel is. If the world were just--if the likelihood of a nation facing sanctions and criminal charges was based on justice and fairness, rather than on who's the easiest target and who's hated the most--many other nations would be facing similar trials.

It's a long-running pattern. Israel is one of the nations with the most international sanctions and censures against it. Every single time they do something wrong, there's a motion in the UN or some other wrist slap for it. And it's not that it's wrong for the UN to stand up and tell a nation that thing they did was evil. The problem is, Israel's record of what they've actually done is no worse than that of a lot of other nations (including the US). But things that get ignored when other nations do them get called out when Israel does them. And it's not that I think Israel should be able to get away with injustice and genocide--I don't--but I also don't think that all the other nations (including my own) should get a pass for what we have done and are doing. I don't think Israel is uniquely horrible. Many other nations (including the US) have done things just as bad, and in many cases have faced little or no censure for them.

The US is a racist nation. One of the ways you can tell is that our justice system, on average, treats people of color (especially Black people) harsher than it does white people. Black people make up 12% of the total US population, but 31% of the US prison population. This is not because Black people are more violent than others, but because the US criminal "justice" system targets Black people. They are no more likely to commit crimes, but far more likely to be convicted of crimes, and far more likely to receive harsh sentences. White people who commit crimes are far more likely to never be charged in the first place, or, if they are charged, to be found not guilty. If they do get found guilty, they are given lesser sentences on average. The high percentage of Black people in US prisons doesn't tell you much about Black people; it tells you a lot about American structural racism.

In the same way, the fact that Israel has had so many sanctions in past years and is facing trial for genocide now doesn't tell you much about whether Israel is better or worse than other nations. But it tells you a lot about the antisemitism of the international system, that they're targeted to a much greater degree than other nations that have done and are doing similar things.

And like I said, I do believe Israel's actions in Palestine are genocide, and that it should stop. But the fact that Israel is getting singled out here as uniquely evil says more about us than it does about them.

[coconutcows]

To be clear:

Do NOT report gaza fundraisers to tumblr.

Definitely do NOT report them to go fund me.

If you are that worried about being scammed then don’t donate. That’s it. Gazans aren’t asking people for tons of money, they constantly say any little bit helps. You can set a minimum amount for yourself so it’s less risky. But do NOT report these ffs. These people are going through a genocide and doing the best they can. They are being extorted out of huge amounts of money they don’t have to reach safety. People are begging with the lives and state of their children and families. People are starving, and dying, and unable to access any food or water or hygiene products.

I would rather scams stay up with risks than to have Gazans and Palestinians who’ve been working their hardest to stay alive have everything they’ve worked for be taken away.

And why is this happening all of a sudden?? Where have you been the past nine months??? “Donate to humanitarian causes” people would, but the trucks and workers get attacked and killed too!!!! Israel won’t let them in!!!!! One truck was blocked by Israeli civilians!!!! “How are they posting to tumblr????” Have you not seen the numerous posts every month about esims??? How people are asking for donations of this to keep Palestinians connected to their loved ones and the rest of the world??? And the gall to call people who’ve been on here for years scammers. Just because they aren’t a big tumblr name you don’t see often doesn’t mean they’re new or an “imposter” for Christs sake.

This weird uprising of Gazan posts all being scams has rubbed me the wrong way. For months we’ve been seeing them with no issues like this. Are so many people really tired of seeing suffering??? Feeling guilty for scrolling past them?? And feeling glad someone else put forth the idea they’re just scams so they can rally behind it so they can stop feeling guilty??

Like I understand. I only get $1000 to last me the entire month, I’m in a very lucky situation where I can budget that money and make it work for the month. I’ve been worried about scams since that one woman raised a few thousand for someone then just disappeared and ghosted everyone.

But just think before you do anything. Because donating and even sharing those posts lets Palestinians know we care and that we’re listening, and that citizens around the world support them.

[sassypotatoe1]

Hello, 👋

My name is Ahmed, and I am from Gaza 🇵🇸. The war has left my life in ruins I have lost my home, my job, and my ability to support my family. My children and I have suffered severe injuries. 😔

I am desperately seeking your help to protect my children, evacuate them from Gaza, and continue my medical treatment abroad.

Your donation of just 5 euros could make a significant impact on our lives and help ensure my children's safety. My campaign is verified, and you can ask for any details to confirm my story. I promise, I am a real person in need, not a robot or scammer.

Please consider donating and sharing our story. "My children are waiting and in need of your donations." 🙏🙏

Thank you from the depths of my heart for your support.

Hi there! Right off the bat no one harass this person. I choose to believe it's a genuine person asking for genuine help, and if it's not and is actually a scammer then oh well it's a good grift and everyone is falling on tough times rn and trying to make some extra cash to survive. I can't believe that you should look the other way when someone is shoplifting and also believe that people using opportunities like this to get people to freely and willingly give them money is inherently evil.

Again, I do believe this is a real Palestinian asking for actual help, and I will agree that using the suffering of others to boost your own pocket is morally off so do not come for me about the above statement, I explain it better further down, but I'm not about to completely cut off someone on the chance that they're not being genuine, because whether they're asking for donations as a Palestinian to evacuate, or whether they're using the cover for personal, individual use during tough times regardless of whether they're using false pretenses, I don't have the time to vet them and I'd rather try to help any person asking for it, regardless of how they ask.

There's also the major possibility that many many Palestinians with campaigns like this cannot be verified because they do not have the knowledge or resources to do so, who also desperately need and deserve help. So in these individual cases I choose to believe the best. The only way I can see myself regretting donating to or sharing a campaign is if the funds are then used to perpetuate real harm, or if they're used on frivolous things like a tesla or a Rembrandt.

As an aside a TV, cellphone, computer, some nice clothes, candles, lotion and nice toiletries, that sort of stuff? Don't consider them frivolous even in the face of more pressing needs, but that's a discussion for another day.

I also do not currently have the funds to donate, so I will be sharing campaigns, and I also do not have the time or resources to vet every campaign I come across. Maybe that makes me a bit irresponsible, but when it comes to time sensitive humanitarian crises I tend to try to help recklessly, because I don't want people to die because I hesitated to verify the validity of their call for help.

Are there scammers out there capitalizing on the Gazan genocide by pretending to be Palestinians asking for aid? Most likely yeah! Do I know from experience as both a crime and community journalist and a years-long activist that scammers are often just people also trying to survive that are smart enough to dupe the system? Most of the time yeah! When you want to start vetting campaigns like these, focus on organizations and corporations with campaigns attracting millions or billions in donations annually. Individual campaigns should not be your verification focus, because they inherently have a much smaller impact than corporate campaigns. If you want to help someone, do it.

Unless the aid you give them is then used to harm or kill another person, what they do with it is kinda not your business anymore. If you're worried about spending limited funds on a false pretense that could be better used elsewhere, it's time to start thinking about lobbying as a form of activism, because congrats! You leveled up!

This is where you approach corporations and government representatives to lobby for divestment, donations, changes in government actions. The many giving a little each helps immensely, yes, but we all only have so much, while 1% of people hold 90% of all the wealth. Instead of worrying about where your little is going, worry about where their much is going.