Monday, January 8: More Evidence for the Hague
We can record and observe Israel's crimes, but a court must decide if it's genocide
The powerless feeling of watching a genocide unfold from a distance has carried over from 2023 into the first weeks of 2024. October 7 was months ago, but the carnage and inhumanity on display every day in Gaza makes me question so much of what we consider normal in our lives.
We’re waiting for a hearing to take place at the International Court of Justice to determine if what we know to be true is actually, technically, legally true. Judges will occupy benches and arguments will be made and objections will come up (disclaimer: this is pretty much the extent of my legal knowledge), but none of this pageantry actually addresses the immediate issue of the bombs falling from the sky. In their lawsuit against the apartheid state, South African representatives specifically requested that the ICJ move quickly to prevent Israel from committing further crimes in Gaza, probably by issuing an order for Tel Aviv to halt its invasion. A request like this can be prioritized, but there’s no timeline for the violence ending.
Unfortunately, what’s happening in Gaza right now isn’t unprecedented. We’ve witnessed genocide and land theft before and the current Israeli campaign of brutal ethnic cleansing is simply a continuation of what has been decades of occupation, oppression, and apartheid. What really sets Gaza apart and makes it unique is the fact that this genocide is being done to a population who don’t even have the option of hiding or trying to escape. It’s pretty unique for a colonizer to control every aspect of who and what can enter an area, from food, water and fuel to medical supplies, internet access, press, etc. This Israeli ‘military campaign’ was never about self-defense. It was always about ethnic cleansing and mass displacement. It was a pursuit of the same objectives that the apartheid state has been after for decades: the destruction of Palestinian livelihood and the theft of Palestinian land and homes.
I think living through this genocide has changed parts of who I am forever. I think about the cruelty of this world and my ability to affect change in it very differently, and the way I relate to other people has also changed. I wouldn’t have called myself an optimist last year (or anytime in recent memory tbh), but I can’t help but feel much less hope for our collective future.
Side Items
Golden Globes: Every year, Hollywood A-listers gather to celebrate the best performances in movies and TV. It’s about four hours of guaranteed boredom, interrupted by incredibly rare instances of sincere happiness. The event took place last night and naturally I watched none of it, but I did clock exactly one celebrity using the red carpet to briefly call for a ceasefire (Shoutout Ramy). Other than that, honestly, in this day and age, who cares?
Boeing Takes a Tumble: A Boeing plane suffered a blown out fuselage flying over Oregon on Friday, miraculously no one sitting nearby was injured. This morning, shares of The Boeing Company dropped 9% at the opening bell, the first day of trading since the incident. Wouldn’t it be ironic if what drives Boeing into financial trouble isn’t the weapons it’s actively manufacturing for an apartheid state, it’s blowing a hole in one of their planes and injuring no one