Settler-colonialism — How it lies to itself and everyone else

Zionist settler-colonialism in Palestine is no different from any settler-colonialist system or regime throughout history, ancient or modern. Israel has not invented anything new.

The only difference is that it is happening in our time, right now, under our noses in full view of the rest of the world. We all witness how it is not only allowed to happen, but is effectively aided and abetted by the richest and most powerful countries in the world. For a species that thinks it is so advanced and that has so much potential, we are pretty primitive and not far off from where we started.

I suspect that in every era, including for example in ancient Greek and Roman times, the ruling elites tend to think of themselves as modern and advanced compared with ‘less developed’ people outside and within their own societies. In each generation we bask in our own imagined ingenuity and advancement. We marvel at all the technologies and ideas we are developing.

But in the way we treat one another and in international relations we have not moved very far from the pack and the jungle. Might seems to still be right and the predators among us tend to win the day and get to shape everyone’s reality according to their vision of it: hunter and hunted, life is a struggle and competition for survival and the stronger wins the big prize, which is to live another day, to continue to exist never mind how.

For humans, just existing is an insult, and it makes us psychologically and socially unwell. As long as we allow those with this survivalist mentality to rule us, none of us would be free to develop to our potential. This is what we really need to think about when we choose leaders, when we do not speak out about injustices and when we choose a direction for humanity.

The summary in this banner captures well the kind of reasoning we were taught at school in Zionist history classes, lest any of us ever thought to question why we were there and what was going on with the Palestinians… Sadly this is incredibly effective. From what is going on in our own societies, from Brexit and the ugly racism we witness, you can see that this colonial mindset is alive and well.