{"id":257800,"date":"2024-03-25T12:00:12","date_gmt":"2024-03-25T12:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=257800"},"modified":"2024-03-23T06:00:31","modified_gmt":"2024-03-23T06:00:31","slug":"voices-from-gaza","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2024\/03\/voices-from-gaza\/","title":{"rendered":"Voices from Gaza"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

by Roger Harris<\/p><\/div>\n

22 Mar 2024 –<\/em> The book Gaza Writes Back<\/em><\/strong> is a collection of short stories from twenty young Gazans. Although published in 2013, the book is highly relevant today.\u00a0 The stories reveal how the last five months are the culmination of a process that has been going on for decades.<\/p>\n

The title is curious: \u201cGaza Writes Back\u201d.\u00a0 Perhaps it is an alternative to \u201cGaza Fights Back\u201d. Certainly in the context of Gaza, writing is an important form of resistance to Israeli repression, occupation and massacres. The oppressor recognizes this as well. At least ninety five journalists<\/a> and media workers have been killed in Gaza since October 7.<\/p>\n

The editor of\u00a0 Gaza Writes Back<\/em><\/strong> was an English literature and creative writing professor at Gaza\u2019s Islamic University named Refaat Alareer. Many of the contributors to this collection of short stories were Alareer\u2019s students.<\/p>\n

There are many references in the book to Israel\u2019s attacks on Gaza in 2008-9 named \u201cOperation Cast Lead\u201d. As the anthology was being printed and first distributed, Israel launched the massacre named \u201cOperation Protective Edge\u201d.\u00a0 In six weeks,\u00a0 Israel killed 2,191 Palestinians and injured 11,231\u00a0 while 71 Israelis were killed.\u00a0 Thirty Palestinians for every single Israeli. As editor Alareer says, \u201cThis book shows the world that despite Israel\u2019s continuous attempts to kill steadfastness in us, Palestinians keep going on , never surrendering to pain or death, and always seeing and seeking liberty and hope in the darkest of times.\u201d<\/p>\n

The editor Alareer says, writing is \u201can act of resistance and an obligation to humanity to raise awareness among people blinded by the\u00a0 multi-million dollar Israeli campaign of \u2018hasbara\u2019 (\u2018persuasion\u2019, or more accurately, disinformation.)\u201d<\/p>\n

Most of the stories recount difficult moments and experiences. That is natural because the oppression in Gaza has been relentless for decades. Here is a concise summary of the conditions in 2014<\/a> when this book came out: \u201cIf you lived in Gaza, how would YOU feel?\u201d<\/p>\n

It is impressive that Gazans continue to resist and maintain their humanity despite the efforts to dehumanize them.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The story \u201cL is for Life\u201d is about a young woman writing a letter to her father who died eleven years earlier. She speaks of her mother\u2019s \u201cbitter loneliness\u201d. It reminds us that for every Palestinian killed there is pain and suffering caused to each of their friends and family. How many women and men share that \u201cbitter loneliness\u201d because their partners or children were killed? How many lives have been irreparably harmed by the injuries and amputations? The author travels to an orphanage that her late father spoke of\u00a0 and sees hope in the midst of destruction.<\/p>\n

The story \u201cOne War Day\u201d describes a mother who opens all the windows at night to avoid windows exploding inwards if there is an Israeli bombing. When the roof collapses the author\u2019s brother is buried under the rubble with his hands still on the book he was reading.<\/p>\n

The story \u201cSpared\u201d describes a girl whose mother insists she stay inside for lunch rather than go out where kids are playing soccer in the street.\u00a0 That saves her from death or injury when a bomb is dropped.\u00a0 Kids died and there were amputated limbs and scarred faces. \u201cOur neighborhood was blown to smithereens in a split second. No more games played. No more goals. No more cheering. And my friends grew up in a second.\u201c<\/p>\n

In the story \u201cA Wish for Insomnia\u201d the writer imagines she is an Israeli soldier with post traumatic stress disorder. As the young writer imagines, there must be Israeli soldiers who take home the nightmare of what they have done just as there are US soldiers with the same mental and emotional disorder. The Palestinian author writes, \u201cThe past few weeks were agonizing for the family. Their father (the Israeli soldier) did not leave the bedroom. All they saw and heard of him was his screaming in the middle of the night, the noise of things breaking, and his moaning during the day.\u201d\u00a0 He has nightmares and says, \u201cWe were sent in tanks to Gaza\u2026. We were instructed to shoot to kill and we shot almost every moving thing. We shot the water tanks, a couple of stray dogs, a cow, a dozen people, and there was that woman with her kid\u2026. I wish I could know what happened to the kid. The kid cried the whole night. I kept hearing the commander\u2019s order in the background, but it was the little kid\u2019s voice that haunted me everywhere\u2026..\u201d<\/p>\n

The short story titled \u201cPlease Shoot to Kill\u201d portrays family life and fear during nights and days of bombing and Israeli soldiers kicking down the door to their house with M16 rifles ready to fire. It describes what it\u2019s like to see the soldiers ransacking the house then hitting the father. What it\u2019s like to see one\u2019s little sibling hit by shrapnel so badly the leg would be amputated. What it\u2019s like to have Apache helicopters overhead and Meerkhava tanks on the street. The father needs a kidney operation in Egypt but is unable to go there. Instead, a baby that needs surgery is allowed to go. \u201cLaila did not hate the little baby who was sent instead of her father. She only hated Israel for making it so that the doctor had to choose. She only wished this baby would survive, grow up, and become a freedom fighter.\u201d<\/p>\n

The story titled \u201cFrom Beneath\u201d describes the thoughts of a young woman under the rubble, unable to move and sensing what parts of her body have been crushed and how her life was coming to end.<\/p>\n

The story \u201cLost at Once\u201d is a love story giving insights into Gazan social class differences.<\/p>\n

These are just a few of the twenty-three short stories in this fine book.<\/p>\n

The editor, Professor Refaat Alareer, was also a moving poet and an influential voice with 83 thousand followers on Twitter\/X. His twitter handle was @ThisIsGaZa<\/a>.\u00a0 In his last interview before being killed, Refaat said \u201cI am an academic. Probably the toughest thing I have at home is an Expo marker. But if the Israelis invade, if they barge at us, charge at us, open the door to massacre us, I am going to use that marker to throw it at the Israeli soldiers, even if that that is the last thing I do. And this is the feeling of everybody. We are helpless. We have nothing to lose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Refaat Alareer and his brother, sister and four of their children were killed in a targeted airstrike on 6 December 2023.\u00a0 His last poem is a testament to his courage and dedication. It has been widely remembered at demonstrations against Israel\u2019s genocide in Gaza.<\/p>\n

IF I\u00a0MUST DIE<\/em><\/p>\n

If I\u00a0must die,<\/em>
\nyou must\u00a0live<\/em>
\nto tell my\u00a0story<\/em>
\nto sell my\u00a0things<\/em>
\nto buy a\u00a0piece of\u00a0cloth<\/em>
\nand some\u00a0strings,<\/em>
\n(make it white with a\u00a0long tail)<\/em>
\nso that a\u00a0child, somewhere in\u00a0Gaza<\/em>
\nwhile looking heaven in the\u00a0eye<\/em>
\nawaiting his dad who left in a\u00a0blaze\u2014<\/em>
\nand bid no one\u00a0farewell<\/em>
\nnot even to his\u00a0flesh<\/em>
\nnot even to\u00a0himself\u2014<\/em>
\nsees the kite, my kite you made, flying up\u00a0above<\/em>
\nand thinks for a\u00a0moment an angel is\u00a0there<\/em>
\nbringing back\u00a0love<\/em>
\nIf I\u00a0must die<\/em>
\nlet it bring\u00a0hope<\/em>
\nlet it be a\u00a0tale<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Some of Refaat Alareer\u2019s outstanding academic lectures are available<\/a> online. A tribute to him by his publisher Just World Books is online here<\/a>. The heading of Refaat Alareer\u2019s twitter account<\/a> says, \u201cI teach; therefore, I am.\u00a0 Have you read Gaza Writes Back<\/em><\/strong>?\u201d<\/p>\n

This book exemplifies courage and dignity in the face of\u00a0 hardship and repeated attacks. Each story is different but collectively they give a sense of\u00a0 continued dignity and hope despite suffering and pain. Ultimately, the stories are uplifting.\u00a0 It is a measure of Israel\u2019s lawlessness that they had to murder the editor of \u00a0Gaza Writes Back.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

___________________________________________<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> Rick Sterling is a member of the <\/em>TRANSCEND Network<\/em><\/a> and an investigative journalist who lives in the SF Bay Area, California. He can be contacted at <\/em>rsterling1@gmail.com<\/em><\/a> or <\/em>rsterling1@protonmail.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

22 Mar 2024 – The book ‘Gaza Writes Back’ is a collection of short stories from twenty young Gazans. The stories reveal how the last five months are the culmination of a process that has been going on for decades.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":186639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[87,3254,865,88,642,427,70,886],"class_list":["post-257800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-transcend-members","tag-gaza","tag-gaza-writes-back","tag-genocide","tag-israel","tag-literature","tag-palestine","tag-usa","tag-zionism"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257800","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257800"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257800\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":257804,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257800\/revisions\/257804"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/186639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}