Last night I was scrolling through twitter, or as they call it today, X. It’s one of the only apps where the algorithm REFUSES to cater to my usual patterns. It’s plastered with right wing hobby politicians and amateur porn and frankly it fucks up my mood every time I’m on that god forsaken app
The tweets that especially worry me are the ones that echo, what I believe or at least imagine, are common thoughts that people have. One of them being that what currently is happening to Palestinians is not a genocide. This claim is backed up with statistics from previous genocides, “30 000 casualites is not a genocide” and preceding to refer to the Rwandan genocide or WW II.
This sentence scares me, because it so greatly reflects why genocides keep happening even when we’ve said never again.
So what really is genocide? Genocide is a combination of highly strategic, multi-layered stages of systemic segregation of people with the intention of extermination. It encompasses so many meticulously orchestrated military offenses and spreading of propaganda that it actually takes years to accomplish, in most cases. Now, the Israeli occupation of Palestine is at least acknowledged by the many people, though with different thoughts about its justification. (As if there is any !!!!)
Almost all genocides have these stages in common. When you actually go into the nitty gritty, even the slurs used are the same; all stemming from the fear of an outsider who’ll destroy the peace of the perpetrator. Rat, cockroach, vermin, terrorist. Entities that bring sickness, are parasitical, dangerous and infectious. When reading about any genocide, the first thing that will strike you is how similar the mechanisms are. So what exactly do they encompass?
Classification: Grouping people based on perceived differences. Ethnicity would be one.
Symbolization: Assigning names or symbols to these groups, often with negative connotations.
Dehumanization: Portraying the targeted group as subhuman or inferior.
Organization: Planning and coordination of genocidal activities.
Polarization: Exacerbating divisions and promoting hostility between groups.
Preparation: Finalizing plans and gathering resources for genocide.
Extermination: Carrying out mass killing of the targeted group.
Denial: Distorting or negating the genocide to avoid accountability.
What else do we call it? What else is there to describe the systemic dehumanization, displacement, the killing, the raping of Palestinians?
What besides apartheid accurately describes the separate legal systems, subjecting Palestinians to military law while Israeli settlers are governed by civilian law; a standard based on ethnicity? What besides open air prison should we use for the movement restrictions in the West Bank, when Israeli settlers have unrestricted access to roads and infrastructure?
What do we call it when Palestinians experience disparities in access to basic necessities like water, when Israeli settlements receive disproportionately higher allocations? Not just as of October 7th as some believe but for decades, intentionally keeping a whole population weak? What do we call it when Palestinian homes get demolished, when people are displaced, when there is a literal blockade modeled to isolate a population?
Is it sufficient to call it self defense by the Israeli state? If it is, what do we call the kidnapping and murder carried out by Hamas? And if so, who is truly the more dangerous “terrorist”?
I saw a video of an Israeli child defending the murder of Palestinian children because he thought that they could grow up to be potential terrorists. The fear installed in that poor child is one strategically indoctrinated from birth, designed to make him passive as his peers are slaughtered. It’s designed to make him see a threat, not a peer.
Understanding genocide through these very specific stages and developments is essential for preventative measures to be taken. I want to, have to, believe that the tweet was from a place of ignorance. But the thing is, ignorance in the age of information is a choice. And if this person would’ve had the dignity to use just 10 minutes of their time, they would have understood that genocide can’t be defined through the amount of real time-death. It has to be boiled down to the intention of the perpetrators, and how strong of a foundation and resource they have to accomplish it. If there is an actual plan with seeds sown decades ago, it will be set in motion and it will succeed. (Especially with America as it's closest ally, Marg Bar Amerika, Disrespectfully)
If we cant see a ghoul for what it is, how can we defeat it? It will certainly make no difference to light candles and join the international politicians sighs of disbelief as thousands turn into hundreds of thousands. It is the smallest of steps, but language holds a significant amount of power. Not only in this case but always. No action will be taken until there’s a consensus that what is going on is in fact, genocide. No preventative measures to save the remnants of Gaza, or Khan Yunis, or the Palestinian people.
The person who wrote that tweet is already at stage 8; denial. Without identifying the narrative we are being fed with, that is where we all will end up, accomplices to what is one hundred percent a genocide.
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