Santa Barbarans for Hamas
by Dale Francisco
It was not surprising to see a press release from a group calling itself the Central Coast Antiwar Coalition in a local left-leaning weekly.
Happens all the time.
This group sponsored a “bike protest” on the streets of Santa Barbara on January 6. The ride culminated with – What else? – a rally in De La Guerra Plaza, whereupon various speakers shared their outrage over the state of Israel’s “ongoing military campaign in Gaza,” and their desire to do whatever they can “to stop the ongoing genocide.”
There was no mention of the murderous October 7th attack on Israeli civilians by Hamas that started the war. Nor any honesty about the meaning of the term “genocide” – the deliberate destruction of a people or culture. Instead, Israel, by defending itself from unending terrorist attacks by Hamas, is accused of committing “ongoing genocide.”
The Israelis have been doing it all along, you see, just a little more intensely, for some reason, since October 7th.
A Little History
In the aftermath of the horrific carnage of World War II, young Americans did what came naturally. They married and had lots of children. Those children – of which I am one – went to schools where they were taught about the evils of Nazism and Communism. The slogan, with particular reference to the Nazi extermination of European Jews, was “Never again.”
All these years later, the goals of American education have changed dramatically. Under the leadership of educators of my generation and later, a watered down but no less virulent Marxism has become the lens for interpreting history. Everything can be characterized as an oppressor-vs.-oppressed conflict, the one side evil, the other virtuous. Nice and simple, no research and no imagination required.
So I wrote a letter to the editor (“Bike Protestors for Hamas”), which, to the paper’s credit, was published. My conservative friends nodded in agreement. My leftist friends – yes, reader, I have them – were appalled. I was not surprised by either reaction, and not upset by those who disagreed with me. Most of them were educated to believe that Israelis were oppressor colonialists who had stolen land from oppressed, impoverished Arabs.
Questions with Answers
If you have leftist friends, and this topic comes up, here’s a question you’re likely to hear from compassionate Santa Barbarans, and some responses based on historical facts that your interlocutors may be unaware of:
How can we stop the deaths from indiscriminate Israeli bombing of innocent civilians in Gaza, as well as from starvation caused by Israelis cutting off food and water?
When it comes to preventing civilian casualties, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) is and has been the most responsible military force on the planet. They dropped millions of leaflets and sent millions of text messages to the residents of Northern Gaza, warning them to leave before the Israeli invasion began. Many who could leave did, though many others were ordered to remain behind by Hamas, who use civilians as human shields.
No matter how scrupulous the IDF is in trying to avoid civilian casualties, they will always be guilty in the eyes of much of the world. When Arabs kill other Arabs – or anybody, really – the topic of civilian casualties never comes up. For example, in September 1970, the time that Palestinians recall as “Black September,” the Jordanian army violently expelled Palestinian refugees who, led by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), had tried to overthrow the Jordanian monarchy.
“Estimates” Vary
In the Wikipedia article on that conflict, you’ll see blithe statements such as this: “On 17 September, the 60th Armored Brigade entered the capital Amman from different directions and shelled the Al-Wehdat and Hussein refugee camps where the fedayeen [PLO combatants] were based with tanks, artillery and mortars.”
Wait a minute: the Jordanians used tanks, artillery, and mortars to shell refugee camps where PLO combatants were based? What about innocent Palestinian refugees? Surely most people in those camps were Palestinian.
Was this the beginning of the “ongoing genocide” against Palestinian Arabs?
Extra credit question: Who was the oppressor and who was the oppressed in that intra-Arab conflict?
In what was to become a tradition, the late Yasser Arafat, leader of the PLO, who initiated the brilliant idea of overthrowing King Hussein, claimed that 25,000 Palestinians had died during the expulsion from Jordan, while more disinterested sources estimated Palestinian dead at 2,000.
Today, the Gaza Health Ministry (a department of Hamas) tells the world that so far 25,000 Palestinian civilians have perished in Gaza. Perhaps a little healthy skepticism is warranted.
As to the topic of food and water: You might wonder why the Gaza Strip, which has been free of Israeli “occupation” since the Israelis left in 2005 and has received hundreds of millions of dollars in Western aid, is dependent on Israel for basic supplies.
It’s because aid money was squandered by Hamas and was used to construct hundreds of miles of military tunnels and to build rockets (many of which, though directed at Israeli civilians, fall within Gaza, and kill their own people), instead of building the basic infrastructure of civilian life. Still, Israel continues to allow hundreds of trucks carrying food, water, and medical supplies across the border every day.
The Hamas-Israel war could be over tomorrow if Hamas released the remaining hostages and surrendered.
Sadly, for everyone on both sides who wants to live in peace, that is not expected to happen anytime soon.
Dale Francisco was elected to Santa Barbara City Council twice, in 2007 and 2011.
Thank you Dale Francisco for your perspective on the present war.
It really helps having your words in printed form because they can be reprinted and shared to those who do no have computers/printers etc. Carol in Lompoc
Well said. Thanks.