Media laden…
Hello everyone,
Something happened yesterday that I wanted to share with you.
yesterday, a friend decided to permanently break contact with me.
To explain: he is a friend I made through Running Blind, a running association for people with a visual disability. We also happened to be members of the same political party, Volt, which made for easy conversation. We were even in the same swimming group for a while, though I haven’t been there in some time.
As I wrote in my previous post, I decided to give up my membership of Volt because of their stance on Israel—specifically, their vote against the proposed arms embargo.
After I left, I also co-signed a letter from a group of Volt members addressed to the board of Volt Netherlands and their parliamentary representatives, urging them to reconsider their position on Israel.
At around 19:40 yesterday, I received a message from him. He asked why I co-signed that letter, even though I had already submitted my resignation. He also accused me of only focusing on Gaza and not talking about Ukraine or Sudan. He ended by saying that he was hereby breaking off contact.
I co-signed that letter because I was asked to, and I stand behind it. I was a member for over three years—I have every right to ask the party to reconsider its stance, whether I’m a current member or not.
The reason I focus so much on Israel is because I feel we are deeply complicit in what is happening there. In Ukraine and Sudan, our involvement is much less—at least as far as I know. There isn’t much more I can do there beyond urging my government to offer more aid, donating myself, and raising awareness.
When it comes to Israel, however, we are directly giving military and financial aid to a government that is committing war crimes and engaging in ethnic cleansing and genocide.
Does that mean I don’t care about the other conflicts and crises happening around the world? Of course not!
But I’m just a human, not a superhero. Nothing more, nothing less. And as a human, I have limited energy. I can only focus on and fight for a few things at a time. I already have my hands full with Gaza, with fighting for accessibility, and with defending migrant and refugee rights in the Netherlands and across Europe.
Your life can’t be one endless struggle against injustice. If you don’t allow yourself moments of joy alongside your activism, you’ll burn out quickly. So I’m doing what I can.
Beyond Gaza, Ukraine, and Sudan, there are countless other injustices in the world. Every country has groups that are being discriminated against or excluded. There is child labour, modern slavery, senseless wars, and many more injustices I probably don’t even know about. As much as I might want to, I can’t solve them all or fight against the entire world.
Even within Israel, many innocent people are suffering and dying because of decisions made by a corrupt government they may not even support. Even IDF soldiers are often conscripted and may simply be following orders. Several groups of Israeli soldiers from different army branches have publicly demanded their government stop the violence.
I’m not happy either when I hear that seven Israeli soldiers aged 19 to 21 have died. At that age, you’re barely an adult. You still have your whole life ahead of you. And their families must be in unimaginable pain.
Still, I truly believe the only way to stop the violence, occupation, blatant land grabs, and the apartheid system is to call for a total weapons embargo on Israel, and to put pressure on its government with all the means at our disposal—militarily, economically, and politically.
I hate war and violence from the bottom of my heart. The only people who ever profit from it are those who make money or gain power through it. Innocent civilians always lose, no matter the context. War breeds more war, hatred breeds more hatred. It never leads to anything.
Anyway, to return to the message I received: I hear this quite often. People being angry that someone focuses on Israel, but not other conflicts.
I don’t think it’s fair to blame anyone for this. There are many people who choose not to speak out at all and simply try to live their lives. It’s not fair to blame them either. Life is short, and everyone has the right to decide how to live it.
Sometimes, I do wish more people would raise their voices and fight for change. But I understand—not everyone is made for that.
I am grateful to anyone that fights for change, to make the world a better place. I am really thankful and take solace from the idea that others fight for the causes I might not have the energy for, and that we strive for change together.
While I might not be on the front lines for a lot of social issues, I do stand behind them and will support in any way I can.
And I believe that others will do the same for the battles I fight, such as improved accessibility, an equitable society, and the rights of persons with a migration background. While not everyone speaks out, a lot of people support me and those fighting for the same causes from the back, in any way they can. All of you following this blog are great examples of that support—you enable me to do what I do, and I never take that for granted.
In the end, the only people responsible for injustice are those commiting it and those directly enabling them to do so.
But there is nothing i can do if he wants to blaim me for the battles i decide to fight, or more accurately those I can’t fight at the moment.
Sometimes speaking out has a price, but it still needs to be done.
He has every right to cut off contact with whomever he wants. But even if he were to come back and apologize, things would never be the same. I wouldn’t be able to trust him in the same way. If someone lashes out at you like that once, they can do it again when things get heated.
So—this is goodbye to this friendship. If you ever read this, thank you for everything. For all the good memories and the things I learned from you. I genuinely wish you all the best.
Stay safe, stay healthy, and take care of yourself.
Yours,
Ihab