Guest contribution by Suha Najjar
Throughout elementary, middle, high school and even much after, we are taught and retaught to be “thankful,” to realize that we have “first-world problems” and others don’t always have what we have. And although we strive to come to terms with this, many times we forget that what we consider essential doesn’t necessarily mean that others are as fortunate to say the same. We grow up knowing what a “normal” childhood consists of. We know how children should behave, and more precisely, we know how children should not behave. Childhood has always been a necessity in our eyes. But in reality, it is a privilege that many times children themselves do not experience.
I’d like to share the story of two young boys, born and raised on two very different parts of the world. [Read more...]
Militancy among Israel’s youth
I wonder when the IDF Spokesperson, an expert at exploiting photographs of Palestinian children donning military regalia, will have the guts to feature one of its own.
When Hamas celebrated its 24th anniversary in mid-December, the Israeli military reported that “more than 100,000 Hamas supporters” had gathered for the ceremony. The remainder of the report quotes Hamas’ charter and lists a variety of self-reported statistics concerning Hamas’ military activity. But although the article itself doesn’t mention children, it is peppered with three bold images of children dressed in green and, in two cases, holding plastic RPGs.
What’s the purpose? To present the supposed militancy of an occupied people and their youth. But what about the savagery of the occupiers? What about these photographs?