Conflict from a deeper view

???After all of the protests that I've been a part of, I haven't really thought of all that is happening in Gaza. Many pictures are posted; the death toll seemed to increase throughout the day. Has anyone really taken a deeper meaning from all of the bloodshed? Are we as a society becoming immune to witnessing death in the Middle East? Do we have to be present in order to really understand the tragedy that is happening? Sure we acknowledge the massacre that is happening, but do we really feel it in our heart? That is the question I ask everyone. I see the numerous facebook groups, I've been to the protests, and I've seen countless pictures. All it means is that you are aware of what is occurring.

???I can never realize how much pain and suffering the people are going through, and I hope I never have to endure something like it in my lifetime. But as I sit here going through another facebook group, I catch a picture of a man carrying his dead son. Then I started thinking, what if I was in his shoes, carrying my dead son/brother/nephew cousin etc. Now actually imagine it for a second, the people you love the most in your arms with their clothes drenched. What have they done to deserve this? Then another picture of a young child sitting near the body of her father. Gaza is a small territory and everywhere you look, death and destruction surround them. The blood of their family and friends paint the walls. I could never live with the havoc that Palestinians have gone through. I've only lost two grandparents that I barely knew, so I can't sit here and tell you that I know how to deal with death.

???Leaflets are dropped telling them to leave their homes, but where is there to go? Should I take my chances at a school when they've been hit also? Do I really want to spend years of my life in refugee camp? What angers me the most is that people can honestly say the attacks on Gaza are justified? They have the military technology to avoid civilian casualties. Is 1300 dead enough? Over 6000 wounded, but what are the chances for them when medical supplies cannot pass through a blockade. Has anyone forgotten that before the war started, the Palestinians were starving because there wasn't enough access to food? Are the Palestinians not allowed their basic human rights also? Has the world forgotten that this was once their land? Does it matter if 1 or 100 or 1000 die, or is it all the same? I've heard comments such as, "they were going to grow up and become terrorists anyway." Children are supposed to be our future. How can I believe in a world that allows this to happen?

???I write this hoping that readers can experience what I have because I don't have the power to change anything. I've always known this but knowing it was never going to stop me from attending every rally and screaming at the top of my lungs to Free Palestine. A tear runs down my cheek but I wipe it away to hide the emotions. The anger rages in my veins but I stay calm. Emotions run deep and I am thousands of miles away, but I can't imagine how I would be if I was in Gaza.

???It is true, Palestinians have the strongest hearts, and theirs has kept them holding onto hope that peace will one day come and they will be able to live in their own state free of occupation.

???As I wipe away the tears, I hope that you take a second and really think about the conflict from a deeper view. Picture yourself in their position, and that is a tear for Gaza.

Zeyad Saeed

President of the United Nations Alliance Student Association

Junior Social Sciences Interdisciplinary major