Gaza

Today i went to the Students Emergency General Meeting called in an attempt to pass a motion in solidarity with the people of Gaza, the Palestinians, or so i thought.

I have friends who have been in the occupied buildings for days, i have rallied outside these buildings in support of the Palestinians cause, i believed wholeheartedly that what was happening was wrong, was an outrage against all forms of humanity and that the BBC should have aired the appeal as what was happening before the cease-fire was, essentially, a disaster. I still do believe all these things, and perhaps naively i believed that politics could be left out of the equation; ignored. My feelings were that all that mattered was the fact that people were dying, 1300 people, innocent people and that needed to stop as those people had no where to run, they were trapped and being bombarded, irrespective of who threw the first stone. Trapped and slaughtered.

So i went along to a few rallies and campaigned.

At the meeting, which was so full that the students cafe area had to be used as an overflow [perhaps around 700 people were there] the first item on the agenda was an amendment to the motion being passed, specifically, to remove the scentance "we wish to show solidarity with the Palestinian people and their democratically elected government, Hamas." The speaker then read aloud Hamas' manifesto [or something] and it contained constant Jew bashing to the most extreme level. "We will not stop until every jew is dead, if there is a Jew hiding behind a bush we will find him and kill him." As is expected with Islamic states, there was also blatant homophobia, sexism, zenophobia.

Who, in their right minds, would support this government? The Palestinian people, perhaps, but they have their reasons. They are a people with extreme pressure on them and who have been badgered into hatred, we however, in our very comfortable western bubble, have not been. We have the luxury of education, freedom and a modern culture not tarred by hatred towards another people. Hamas may have been demorcratically elected within Palestine but that is no reason why we should sacrafice our morals and accept their leadship and show solidarity with them. I would frankly rather die.

So i raised my hand, as i thought the ammendment was essential, how could a motion supporting a government that destructive and filled with hatred be allowed to pass? We were in the significant minority. I was ashamed of those who stood around me. No, perhaps not ashamed, bewildered. The shame and anger came later. Did they not understand..were they not listening? Why were they cheering as they were told they had the majority? Do they support Hamas? Because, you know, being a gay in the midst of 300 potential gay bashers is not fun.

At that moment it sank. Whatever it was, where ever on or within my body it was, it sank. And it sank low. I went for a cigarette and bought some tickets to a club night tomorrow evening whilst outside.

When i returned it just got worse. People who obviously did not support Hamas were leaving and being booed whilst doing so. Booed. What the fuck was is this? I found myself thinking. Is there no dignity left, no sense, no ounce of intelligence left in their brains? Do they not even have the courtesy to let those who disagree leave gracefully? They booed the chair. Imbeciles. They booed another female speaker who tried to explain Hamas' attitudes towards women, they didn't care. They were a mob intent on one thing and one thing only; they were cutting their noses off despite their faces.

The motion passed, inclusive of the Hamas clause. I felt empty, cheated.

As the room slowly emptied chants were being shouted.

"Free free, Palestine!"

"Viva Viva, Palestina!"

"From the river, to the sea, Palestine will be free!"

A close friend's older sister, Chair of the Universities Socialist Party was leading the chanting. I felt like screaming, like asking for my time back, for my beliefs and hope to be re-instated. They were pro-Hamas.

Never, ever, will i be pro-an islamic state. As long as i draw breath i will fight for the right to be free to love who i will and every islamic state in the world currently bans that on the basis of religion, the God at whose core is the very same God who created us all, whom we all worship.

So i went to the library and did some studying. I studied the wrong book first, it was shit. I've not done nearly enough but fuck it.

I'm not protesting with this University again for Palestine.

The motion passed, with the