adding two quotes here from renowned Palestinian intellectual Edward Said from 2002.
"[Arafat] never really reined in Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which suited Israel perfectly so that it would have a ready-made excuse to use the so-called martyrs' mindless suicide bombings to further diminish and punish the whole people. If there is one thing that has done us more harm as a cause than Arafat's ruinous regime, it is this calamitous policy of killing Israeli civilians, which further proves to the world that we are indeed terrorists and an immoral movement. For what gain, no one has been able to say." (From Oslo to Iraq and the Road Map, p 185)
"First, I am secular; second, I do not trust religious movements; and third, I disagree with these movements' methods, means, analyses, values, and visions." (Power, Politics, and Culture, p 437)
I am so proud to call you my son-in-law!! I thank you for your profound words on this issue......I thank you for your objectivity and the remarkable way you forced those with a "one sided view" to examine it from the point of "the other side, from other sides". As I said from day one, you are a remarkable man, always with the courage to put yourself in the position to be informative and enable people to think beyond ...and beyond...and beyond.....what they thought they knew.
This is incredible—rhetorically; there are no wasted words. Every sentence invites the reader to metacognitively/reflectively question their position vis-a-vis the media’s heavy-handed, slanted, haphazardly simplified, and purposefully salacious coverage of a fight over land, yes, but also over so much more including who has the opportunity to be fully human and who does not (and has not—dating back, in some ways, to the Old Testament story of Isaac and Ishmael).
This essay is both meticulously balanced and, simultaneously, radically humanizing.
I’m going to have my middle and highschoolers read it this week, so that we can discuss it. We also use something called world-class examples. For me, this essay is a world-class example on how to present a balanced argument, while centering the humanity of people, especially peoples, whose humanity has often been ignored, dismissed, or outright denied.
Beautifully written, Sepehr! You've thoughtfully articulated the profound emotions many of us grapple with in light of the distressing actions from both Hamas and the Israeli government. This topic has always been a challenging one for me to discuss, primarily due to the concerns you highlighted: the naive haste with which people can label you. Merely because the corrupt government of Iran supports Palestinians doesn't mean we should conflate the two, nor should we lose sight of the Palestinians' intrinsic rights to freedom and human dignity. Supporting the rights of Palestinians shouldn't label us as antisemitic, nor should it blind us to the anguish and suffering endured by Israelis who have been victimized by the acts of terrorism by Hamas. Chomsky said once: “Everyone’s worried about stopping terrorism. Well, there’s a really easy way: stop participating in it.” I think we could add this Chomsky's point: stop being ignorant about what’s happening in that region, stop letting the mainstream media with particular agenda feed you bullshit, and avoid being "manipulated by a reductive and regressive politics"
This is incredible—rhetorically; there are no wasted words. Every sentence invites the reader to metacognitively/reflectively question their position vis-a-vis the media’s heavy-handed, slanted, haphazardly simplified, and purposefully salacious coverage of a fight over land, yes, but also over so much more including who has the opportunity to be fully human and who does not (and has not—dating back, in some ways, to the Old Testament story of Isaac and Ishmael).
This essay is both meticulously balanced and, simultaneously, radically humanizing. I can see that your heart for justice is analogous to your heart for people. This essay is what love looks like in public, which Dr. Cornel West argues is the definition of justice.
I’m going to have my middle and highschoolers read it this week, so that we can discuss it. We also use something called world-class examples. For me, this essay is a world-class example on how to present a balanced argument, while centering the humanity of people, especially peoples, whose humanity has often been ignored, dismissed, or outright denied.
adding two quotes here from renowned Palestinian intellectual Edward Said from 2002.
"[Arafat] never really reined in Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which suited Israel perfectly so that it would have a ready-made excuse to use the so-called martyrs' mindless suicide bombings to further diminish and punish the whole people. If there is one thing that has done us more harm as a cause than Arafat's ruinous regime, it is this calamitous policy of killing Israeli civilians, which further proves to the world that we are indeed terrorists and an immoral movement. For what gain, no one has been able to say." (From Oslo to Iraq and the Road Map, p 185)
"First, I am secular; second, I do not trust religious movements; and third, I disagree with these movements' methods, means, analyses, values, and visions." (Power, Politics, and Culture, p 437)
I am so proud to call you my son-in-law!! I thank you for your profound words on this issue......I thank you for your objectivity and the remarkable way you forced those with a "one sided view" to examine it from the point of "the other side, from other sides". As I said from day one, you are a remarkable man, always with the courage to put yourself in the position to be informative and enable people to think beyond ...and beyond...and beyond.....what they thought they knew.
awwww thanks Miki jan, I'm deeply humbled. love you!!!
This is incredible—rhetorically; there are no wasted words. Every sentence invites the reader to metacognitively/reflectively question their position vis-a-vis the media’s heavy-handed, slanted, haphazardly simplified, and purposefully salacious coverage of a fight over land, yes, but also over so much more including who has the opportunity to be fully human and who does not (and has not—dating back, in some ways, to the Old Testament story of Isaac and Ishmael).
This essay is both meticulously balanced and, simultaneously, radically humanizing.
I’m going to have my middle and highschoolers read it this week, so that we can discuss it. We also use something called world-class examples. For me, this essay is a world-class example on how to present a balanced argument, while centering the humanity of people, especially peoples, whose humanity has often been ignored, dismissed, or outright denied.
I’ll let you know how it goes.
Glad to know you live where this act is permissable.
My love, you let your voice dance and I bask in its song...thank you for being unapologetically you <3
Thank you for this. I've been struggling to find something coherent to day and you have opened up that possibility. In solidarity . .. . .
Beautifully written, Sepehr! You've thoughtfully articulated the profound emotions many of us grapple with in light of the distressing actions from both Hamas and the Israeli government. This topic has always been a challenging one for me to discuss, primarily due to the concerns you highlighted: the naive haste with which people can label you. Merely because the corrupt government of Iran supports Palestinians doesn't mean we should conflate the two, nor should we lose sight of the Palestinians' intrinsic rights to freedom and human dignity. Supporting the rights of Palestinians shouldn't label us as antisemitic, nor should it blind us to the anguish and suffering endured by Israelis who have been victimized by the acts of terrorism by Hamas. Chomsky said once: “Everyone’s worried about stopping terrorism. Well, there’s a really easy way: stop participating in it.” I think we could add this Chomsky's point: stop being ignorant about what’s happening in that region, stop letting the mainstream media with particular agenda feed you bullshit, and avoid being "manipulated by a reductive and regressive politics"
thanks Paymun jan for reading and for your comments here.
Thank you for your wise words and straight forward tone. There is nothing to question here. Proud of you and how lucky your students are to have you.
I was so struck by Saadi’s strong poetic words on empathy:
If you are indifferent about the misery of others,
it may not be appropriate to call you a human being.
Thank you for sharing.
Well put, sir.
This is incredible—rhetorically; there are no wasted words. Every sentence invites the reader to metacognitively/reflectively question their position vis-a-vis the media’s heavy-handed, slanted, haphazardly simplified, and purposefully salacious coverage of a fight over land, yes, but also over so much more including who has the opportunity to be fully human and who does not (and has not—dating back, in some ways, to the Old Testament story of Isaac and Ishmael).
This essay is both meticulously balanced and, simultaneously, radically humanizing. I can see that your heart for justice is analogous to your heart for people. This essay is what love looks like in public, which Dr. Cornel West argues is the definition of justice.
I’m going to have my middle and highschoolers read it this week, so that we can discuss it. We also use something called world-class examples. For me, this essay is a world-class example on how to present a balanced argument, while centering the humanity of people, especially peoples, whose humanity has often been ignored, dismissed, or outright denied.
I’ll let you know how it goes.