queen-mihai : Please remember that we are miles from finished doing what we need to do for Palestine A few countries recognized them as a sovereign nation? Great. No truly that’s great. I mean that with my whole heart. The colonist world is RUN by these symbolic gestures and it does actually mean something when they finally buckle and tell people that they are, in fact, people. “Uggghhhhh fiiine I guess your lives *matter* or whatever geez” Like I do get that that seems facile and imaginary. Like geez is it really that hard to say some damn words? But this is the world we live in, and the current leaders of that world have decided that SOME words carry an amount of weight and seriousness that borders on the magical. So they don’t want to use those specific words unless they know they won’t pay the price for them somehow. The fact that some countries are finally using those magic words “Palestine is a country” DOES MEAN SOMETHING. BUT!!!!!! You are also right. Unless we keep our politicians’ feet to the fire, they can and sometimes will try to go right back to imagining that “saying the magic words” is enough. “But but but we did the thing you wanted us to do! We said the magic words!” Those words only mean something because THOSE words drive real ACTION. If Palestine is a country then it deserves to protect itself If Palestine is a country then this is a WAR If Palestine is a country, then any missiles, any bombs, any bullets it fires at an occupying force is justified in the interest of maintaining sovereignty. If Palestine is a country; then their leadership, regardless how popular or unpopular they are throughout the world, has a right to govern their people as they see fit If Palestine is a country; then whatever acts they take in self-defense are subject to the same scrutiny, or lack thereof, that the occupiers are subject to. We don’t get to pick and choose and say their children’s deaths are justified while the occupiers deaths are a tragedy. They get to fight back in whatever way they can. Palestine is a country. They deserve to have allies with boots on the ground. They deserve air support. They deserve field artillery. They deserve radars and drones and bombers and friends who will keep them safe and a dome of protection above their children’s heads even as their defenders win the fight. Palestine is a country. They deserve logistics support and training and ammunition and uniforms and body armor and helmets and intelligence to turn the tide of battle. Palestine will fight back. They will get backing from the international community and we don’t care who in that community provides that backing. We can argue about deals and implications and worldwide leadership once the bombs stop falling. When peace is achieved, we can figure out how to protect that peace. Until then, we can’t wring our hands and worry about “optics” because the ONLY optics that matter are LIFE and DEATH For someone who can’t go to sleep without worrying that their life will end before the next morning, the only optics that matter are those of a soldier coming with a loaf of bread and a hand to hold that says “I’ll protect you” And what uniform that soldier is wearing does not fucking matter. Will it be a Norwegian flag on that soldiers shoulder? An American flag? A Ukrainian flag? Maybe the flag of Burkina Faso? Maybe the flag of Benin? Or Zimbabwe? Or Morocco? Or Egypt? Or Germany? Or Australia? Or Uruguay? Or Brazil? Or Uzbekistan? Do you think that child will turn that bread away if the soldier offering it is from Estonia? No. They won’t. The country we need to be taking care of is Palestine. We keep learning every day that we, the world, want the DEFENDERS TO WIN. We don’t give a shit about some stupid fucking chain of hotels that we’re never going to visit. And I, as a black, transgender woman, do not care what the people of Palestine think of me. What I care about is that they stay alive to continue to think it. And a million other thoughts. They deserve to live. They deserve help. We are not done fighting until Palestine can breathe and sleep and play safely. When they can write books that sit alongside mine. When they can travel and go to school and make art and kiss their babies goodnight under a peaceful sky Palestine deserves to be free Oh I was on TOP of it this day!