Oaxaca and Palestine: A Shared Understanding of Freedom and Liberation
Like many across the globe, we too have been closely following the troubling developments affecting Palestinians and Israelis. The ongoing, increased bombardment on Palestinians is devastating. Even more heartbreaking is that many western governments including the U.S. have expressed support, inevitably complicit in what many scholars have named a colonial project that started over 75 years ago.
As we continue to process the events unfolding, we cannot help but reflect on how the issue of Palestine is equally an indigenous people's rights issue– just as it is for Oaxacans. In our numerous trips to Oaxaca, we could not help but notice the abundance of street art expressing Oaxaca-Palestine solidarity.
You may already be wondering, "what is the connection?" For Oaxacans, as many other historically marginalized populations across the globe, the issue of Palestine is one that intimately resonates. Oaxacans have lived experience and continue to endure oppression. They deeply understand the struggle to fight occupation, effects of apartheid and colonization, as well as repeated violent attempts at erasure of their own culture and people for resisting a colonizing force.
We believe that no human rights issue is isolated and that context is crucial for understanding what is going on. To help in this endeavor, we are offering some linked resources below, especially for those who may not be familiar with what is happening. We share these with the firm belief that everyone has a right to safety, liberation, and freedom.
Statement by Jewish Voice for Peace: The Root of Violence is Oppression
My Israeli Friends: This is Why I Support Palestinians by Ilan Pappe
