From Victims to Perpetrators: The Paradox of the Israel-Palestine Conflict

By Rodney Richardson

The whole world is horrified by Israel’s continuous bombing of Gaza which now exceeds the death toll of over 30,000 civilians in the past five months. Two-thirds of those casualties are women and children. This is cruel and considered a crime against humanity–condemned by the UN and America as humanitarian relief efforts and cease-fire talks are being stalled. Joining the ranks of support for the Palestinians are many Native American tribes who view this aggression as blatant acts of genocide–the intentional destruction of a race of people in whole or in part. American Indians know these actions very well as the same thing that historically happened to them is now happening to the Nation of Palestine.                                   

 When the European colonies began their mass illegal migration over 400 years ago (beginning with the Pilgrims) to Indian Country (now known as America), the Indigenous population was estimated to be 150 million. Now, it has been reduced to less than 10 million due to government-planned downsizing by way of active hostile massacres and passive-aggressive episodes of starvation. African Americans were also impacted by genocide since the creation of our white supremacist government in 1776 through slavery, systematic racism, and violence like the Tulsa Massacre and many other instances that echo loudly in history and still ring out today by the gun blasts from racist police forces and by white supremacy groups like the KKK, Neo Nazis, and Aryan Brotherhood. Ironically, Jewish people were slain by the millions during Germany’s barbaric “ethnic cleansing” years under Hitler.                                                                           

The Oglala Sioux Tribe of Rapid City, South Dakota, and a handful of other Native nations in the United States are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza after a resolution was presented to the council by the Oglala Lakota Chapter of the International Indigenous Youth Council. The resolution, (reported by Rapid City Journal newspaper) which passed 14-to-1, calls for state and federal representatives to advocate for fuel, water, food, and supplies to be allowed into Gaza, to cease military aid to the Israeli government, and for an immediate cease-fire. Oglala Lakota Youth Council representatives and community members presented powerful speeches showing strong support for the resolution– comparing the treatment of Palestinian people to that of Lakota people by European settlers.                             

Mato White Plume, Oglala Lakota, and a member of the Youth Council had this to say– “It was kind of nerve-wracking because of the lack of education on what’s going on over there. We didn’t know where our tribal leaders would be at, but they supported us using our voices and speaking out, which let us know that they understood. We are the descendants of America’s genocide, and we’re still trying to heal from what they put us through. So when this genocide against Palestinians began in October, we felt it was crucial for all Indigenous people to stand with them and speak out against what’s happening,”  How can victims of genocide become perpetrators of genocide as it is with Israel and Palestine? Everything about the “war” is senseless and blocking humanitarian aid is cruel.