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Nobody’s Asking You To Light Yourself On Fire, Just Speak Up About Gaza
On February 25, 2024, active Air Force serviceman Aaron Bushnell calmly doused himself in a flammable liquid and lit himself on fire. As his entire body was engulfed in flames, he did not scream but said “Free Palestine” repeatedly, until the fire and the pain took his consciousness from him forever.
One can argue that his actions were wrong, that they were too extreme, or that he was insane. But it seems that it is more wrong, more extreme, and more insane of those who have been witnessing an ongoing genocide and yet have done nothing at all in response.
We can quibble about whether genocide is the appropriate word, although Amnesty International has explicitly used it repeatedly. Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights for the UN, uses the word genocide as well, as do many other UN officials. But if what is being done to the people of Gaza is eventually determined by some future international tribunal to not rise to the legal definition of genocide, it is surely toeing the mark. Not being a lawyer myself, I can only say that civilized people cannot be permitted to commit the atrocities the Israeli government has committed in the last 18 months. Humanity cannot allow itself to normalize the wanton slaughter and starvation of children. 5 hours ago, ABC News of…