Police look at you strangely, you get stopped randomly, you’re treated like a second-class citizen, and your life is seen as either a number or as a political pawn — we are not only talking about black lives in the United States, but also about Palestinian lives in Palestine.
Of course, these injustices happen on much different scales and contexts, but all root back to living under an oppressor. With recent events happening in Tulsa, Charlotte, and almost every day in the United States, showing solidarity and support for Palestinian lives is vital.
Beyond just basic survival, education is a privilege rather than a right in both communities. Palestinian and Jewish children are segregated from kindergarten through high school, with the Israeli government investing more than three times as much in a Jewish student than a Palestinian student.
Segregation does not exist legally in the United States educational system, but minority students attend predominantly minority schools without enough funding, teachers or supplies.
Finally, the most basic of basic needs, water, is challenged if you’re Palestinian. According to the United Nations, 60,000 Palestinians in the West Bank spend a sixth of their income trucking water into their neighborhoods. In Gaza, the United Nations found that about 95 percent of the water received is polluted and unfit for drinking.
In the United States we can look at the water crisis in Flint, Mich., as the best example of how a predominantly black town had to suffer because of irresponsible and racist legislation.
The comparison of these problems shows the similarities between two communities that are simply trying to live. Despite being thousands of miles away, solidarity and support can transcend distance to build a stronger international community.
