A Coco Canary Grounding
November 2023
A Personal Reflection on What is Happening in Palestine & Israel
Welcome to A Coco Canary Grounding
Hello from Molly C. O’Connor, the principal and founder of Coco Canary Consulting, LLC, a creative evaluation firm.
We are based in St. Paul, MN, and acknowledge that we are on the stolen lands of the Dakota People (specifically the Wahpekute Band of Dakota, who are among the Oceti Sakowin, “Seven Council Fires”). These people were the first stewards of the lands we occupy, and they are still here. We honor their connection to this land and their ongoing resilience in the face of violent colonialism. Learn how to go beyond a land acknowledgment by reading this guide by the Native Governance Center and their Case Studies page.
Art drawn by Molly C. O’Connor
A Grounding
In the Coco Canary Newsletter, we always have a section titled “A Grounding.” Today, this post is only a grounding specifically about what is currently happening in Palestine and Israel. This post begins with excerpts from an interview transcript with Dr. Gabor Maté, a survivor of the Holocaust, an expert in the psychology of trauma, addiction, and ADD, and a critic of Zionism. I share resources and a personal reflection at the end.
Excerpts from an Interview with Dr. Gabor Maté on Israel/Palestine – October 28, 2023 Video
Predominantly, these excerpts are in chronological order from when they were spoken in the interview and are organized into sections with themes based on the question asked by the interviewer (his daughter, Hannah). Anything in italics are quotes from Dr. Gabor Maté.
“What fed such hatred and desire of revenge for those people who broke out of Gaza [on October 7th]? It did not begin on October the 7th.”
The Difference Between Criticizing Israel/Zionism Versus Acts of Antisemitism
Antisemitism:
“There are people… who any criticism of Israel, they use as fuel for their already-embedded anti-Jewish sentiments.”
Criticism of Israel & Zionism:
“For the most part, I see people that criticize Israel do so with a lot of pain in their hearts. They actually want justice. They want justice for everybody. They criticize Israel not because it’s Jewish but because of what it does. And what [Israel] does has been called recently by 2000 Israeli and Jewish academics, rabbis, and historians, ‘apartheid.'”
How a Zionist or Zionist-leaning Person Might React to Criticism of Israel:
“If you are pro-Zionist, who fully believes that Jewishness is identifiable with Zionism in Israel, then naturally you’ll think that anybody criticizing Israel is either an anti-semite or a self-hating Jew. But that perception is a product of your belief that Jewishness is identified with Israel.”
Actions of Pain & Suffering Are Often Led By Emotion. Actions of Peace are Led By Reason and Empathy of the “Other”
“Recently, Israel has suffered in a way that it hasn’t suffered before, and that’s to be lamented. And the people there need to be supported because they are having a hard time. It also needs to be acknowledged that when it comes to the scale of suffering imposed by one party over the other, it is barely a comparison, historically speaking. The number of deaths, the imprisonments, the suffering, and the deprivation [of the Palestinian people] has been the prerogative of the stronger party [i.e., Istrael]. I’m not speaking morally here. I’m speaking practically. I’m not saying to justify anything. I’m saying, do we want to move forward to peace, or do you just want to harbor your emotions?“
Decisions Based on Emotion DOES NOT Lead to Peace:
“We are entitled to our emotions, but when we are emotional and only emotional, our perspective narrows. It becomes defensive. We get consumed by self-defense and attack. That doesn’t lead to peace.” … “so we need to deal with our emotions… not repress them, not to reject them, but also not let them be the Guides of our actions, especially when these emotions are conditioned by a view of history by the most part excludes the experience of the other.”
Decisions Based on Empathy and Insight DOES Lead to Peace:
“What leads to peace is a willingness to understand the experience of the other and for us to be guided by the parts of our brain that are adult. And that happens in the mid-frontal cortex where empathy, insight, compassion, and self-awareness are modulated.”
The Power of Language And The Holding Of Multiple Truths
“What is happening in Gaza has been called by Israeli and Jewish Scholars ‘genocide.’ I don’t agree with that word because genocide is when you try to eliminate another people. And that happened to the Jews in Europe. But by international definition of genocide, right now [in Palestine] is genocide. That simply is how it is. … Any large attack that kills a large number of civilians, moves them out of their place, and puts them in danger, by-in-large, is considered genocide. Without getting into the [language] debate, let’s not even use the word. [To me], what is happening is a Massive War Crime.”
Justifiable Versus Explainable:
“Just as the events of October 7th are not justifiable by anything that Israel did before, although it is explainable, it’s not justifiable. The two are not the same thing. At the same time, what Israel is doing right now is not in any way justifiable. It’s not a response to what just happened. It’s what Israel has always done when there was much less provocation. The killing of large number of Palestinians. Twenty thousand [Palestinian] civilians died in 1982 in the Lebanese war. Tens of thousands [of Palestinian civilians] were killed in 1947-48… deliberately. These are not questionable historical facts.”
The Why and How For Peace
“So what is going on right now is not a response to October the 7th. It’s a continuation of what’s been going on for 80 years now. So: (1) There needs to be a ceasefire. Right now. (2) There needs to be negotiations for the release of the hostages [both in Gaza and in Israeli jails].” “[During negotiations] Hamas has asked… that Israel let go of the children and women in Israeli jails. How’s that unreasonable? I’m not here to support Hamas. I don’t like Hamas. I don’t like what they stand for. I don’t like what they do. I don’t like what they do to their own people. But they have made a reasonable demand about an exchange of hostages. Let that happen. Because those hostages that Hamas holds are innocent people, just as much as the thousands of Palestinians in Israeli jails are innocent. And many aren’t even charged with anything. They don’t even go on trial, but they’re tortured. And I’ve seen that with my own eyes when I was in the occupied territories last year.”
To learn more, watch the video! And, if you read the whole section, start watching after the 21-minute mark. The transcript above is from before the 21-minute mark.
Resources
History Books (recommended from the video)
- The Birth of Israel: Myths and Realities by Simha Flapan (Zionist author, with explicit happenings of the 47-48 War/Nakba. Happenings that are not shared to their full truth in current society today)
- The History of Modern Palestine and The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine by Ilan Pappé (Israeli Author, Zionist Critical-lens)
- The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917–2017 by Rashid Khalidi (Palestinian author. Unobjective, in no way anti-Jewish)
Healing/Self-Help Books (recommended by a friend in a Jewish body)
- Conflict Is Not Abuse: Overstating Harm, Community Responsibility, and the Duty of Repair by Sarah Shulman (A Jewish-American author and artist, very involved with studying & activism for peace in Palestine/Israel).
Places to Donate:
Other Resources:
- A friend’s personal story for why they support a Ceasefire
- I know Canva isn’t great with alt text. Email me if you need an accessible format.
A Reflection From Molly
Hi friends, Molly here. You may be wondering why I only included the words from Dr. Gabor Maté. And that’s a great question because there are SO MANY other scholars, activists, and voices to be uplifting right now. The reasoning is:
- I’ve been a fan of Dr. Maté for years. I first heard of him through his amazing therapeutic scholarship on trauma & addiction, especially on how it shows up in the body, in family dynamics, and its generational impacts (past and future). He has also helped me have a deeper understanding of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. I appreciate his honesty, focus on shared humanity, the importance of empathy, and his desire for peace.
- This video felt relevant and resonant to what my brain has been holding and what my body has been experiencing since October 7th—and for many years. Much of the excerpts above reflect my feelings and beliefs about what is occurring in Palestine and Israel.
Over the last month, I’ve been in many conversations with friends, colleagues, family, community groups, and *cough* my therapist about what’s happening in Palestine and Israel. Perspectives have been diverse, though everyone I have talked to agrees war is not the best option and killing civilians on both sides doesn’t serve any good purpose.
I feel there is so much more to say. But what is top of mind is the importance of radical conversations and radical action, which I try to practice.
- Radical Conversations: Enter a conversation able and ready to be present. Listen without interruption, both verbal and mental. Reflect on what you heard. Pause and be curious. Dig for roots. Respond with compassion. Respond with questions grounded in curiosity. Respond with a knowing that the recipient may disagree, and that is okay. The conversation is what is important, not the outcome. These conversations can be verbal, written, or facilitated through art.
- Radical Action: Exit a conversation and derive insight. Take that learning and find ways to take tangible action. An action based on the root of the learning or issue being discussed.
A Real-Life Example: I attended an event last week where two community organizers, both Jewish, made space for people to come together. Specifically to support folks to connect to the words to express what they’re feeling and experiencing in response to the violence in Gaza, Israel, and the West Bank. It was also an invitation for non-Jewish people with Euro ancestry to radically listen and to ask sticky questions. This event ended up being a fantastic example of a radical conversation. I emerged from the event with key learnings and tangible actions. For example, the facilitators named how many of the questions from non-Jews were about Zionism. They said it is important to understand Zionism, but they pushed us folks who grew up Christian and have Christian ancestors to learn more about Christian Zionism. To prioritize reflecting on how ourselves and our ancestors are also a part of this terrible situation.
I so appreciated that invitation and reflected on some actions I can take to learn and do more:
- To better understand what Christian Zionism is and its historical and current-day impacts.
- To explore how my Christian ancestors possibly supported (financially and politically) massive war crimes.
- Reflect if and how Christian Zionism shows up in my body and mind (as someone who grew up in a non-practicing Irish Catholic and Lutheran home).
- Determine actional steps to disrupt Christian Zionism in myself, in my family, and in my community.
Lastly, a friend asked me, “What is after Cease-Fire?” And I honestly didn’t know how to respond—nor did the folks at the radical conversation I referenced above whom I asked the same question. However, it was said that it is okay not to know.
In my opinion, the current main actors—Hamas, a militant & extremist group in Gaza, and the far-right Israeli government—are not fit for true peaceful outcomes. The leaders in power on both sides see each other as less than human. And when that happens, there is not much hope for peace.
Something I am taking with me—which was uplifted in the radical conversation—is that there are Jewish and Muslim activists in Israel, Gaza, the West Bank, and around the world who have been fighting for a peaceful solution for decades. And it is those leaders who need our support and whom we should look toward for guidance.
I know this Grounding will land differently for each reader. And, if anything I say offends you, please know that is not my intent. And, if it feels right for you, I would love to hear from you.
Know I am holding you all very close. Especially my Muslim and Jewish friends, colleagues, and community members.
Love,
– Molly
