Neither Israelis nor Palestinians are ‘less than’

Today I sent the following message to President Biden (https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/):

"The attack on Israel by Hamas was horrific — and wrong — but Hamas does not represent all Palestinians, just as Benjamin Netanyahu does not represent all Israelis. I am a Jew — well aware of the long history of antisemitism, and the fact that there are countries and organizations surrounding Israel that openly want it destroyed. But one thing is certain: killing innocent Palestinians will not make Israelis more safe; it plants the seeds for more hatred and more killing. It is right and proper for the U.S. to "stand with Israel," but it is wrong to do so without calling out the current bombing and blockade of Gaza for what it is: genocide. I urge you to withhold all monetary and military support for Israel as long as it continues this campaign against innocent Gazans. It sickens me to think that my country — my taxes — are supporting this war."

I urge any of you who feel the same way I do to do the same. More importantly I urge all of us to refrain from the black-and-white thinking that leads to treating a group of people, be they Palestinans, Israelis, Democrats, Republicans, whatever, as "less than." We are all human beings and we all deserve to be treated with honesty and respect.

Peter Rolnick

Iowa City