‘A conversation between the sword and the neck’: two minutes of brutal truth, sensitivity, and conviction. Ghassan Kanafani, author, revolutionary.
This is raw power. This is legacy. Without legacy, we forget. Desensitization is evidence of normalization - the degree of injustice in the world has reached such a climax that its prevalence is absorbed more than it is questioned critically with the acute motive of extinguishing it. I consider this absorption a form of submission. If you are in a position of consistent mental, financial, and communal stability, it is a form of succumbing to the mass desensitization of violence to make yourself the centre of your life as a way of life. I would absolutely consider it immoral. Identity is a right: to investigate one’s self-concept is a right; to stretch the limits of one’s potential is a right; comfort is a right; stability is a right; personal ascension is a right - at core, the way we define ourselves to ourselves is the only actual control we have over the value and meaning of our life, and that is what we use to construct a foothold in the world for ourselves that seems likeable and worthwhile. Everyone has the right to an investigation of the world they live in, to compartmentalize it and interact with it so that they can live their life to the absolute fullest. In the wake of imminent death, life is all we have. There is nothing else to cling to, so by definition, there is nothing else to fight for - at the most fundamental level, humanity is by definition on the same side. Do you see how simple this is, at root? All else is ultimately a distraction. Do not forget this. Life is not political.
Read as extensively as possible. Acquire knowledge. Grow your mind in every way possible. Don’t underestimate people and their ability to think. Disorient people to make them think; it is possible to be confrontational and also delicate, gentle, and considerate. Inform people; keep yourself open to being informed in turn. Question things and think critically. Prompt others to do the same. There is strength in numbers. There is strength in logic and empathy. Nurture it in yourself and in others. Nurture sensitivity - that is the literal antidote to desensitization. It is a moral responsibility.
Think carefully. Feel freely. Fear next to nothing; conviction does well to eradicate fear.
Do not be idle.
Repost from 3 years ago. Now that everyone is aware of Palestine, I feel safer posting this
