Dear Jerusalem...

“Dear Jerusalem // letter”

Dear Jerusalem,

They say “People come and people go” and that saying was successfully examined on you; ever since the city of Jerusalem rose, so many empires and culture either occupied it or was created from the insides of it. Beginning with the Canaanites…

      Everyone on earth wanted to be a drop of blood in your veins. Everyone wanted to be the words in your mouth. Everyone on this planet craved to be the bird in your cage, cuffed for freedom. Everyone desired to call you home and I am lucky to call you home. I call your prayers that have never been heard my home. I call your melodies that fed generations hope my home. I call your crying-out-for-help screams that were heard but nobody came running for you, my home. I call the sacrifice, the price and the future that vanished away our dreams of a pillow with no key underneath it; but a key in the lock, my home. I call every bit of a disappointment and a high hope my home. I call the seconds that turned into years my home. I call my mother’s womb (which I should have never left, by the way) my home. I call my father’s legacy my home (or the home that I wanted to leave). I call my home the anticipation for The Right Of Return. I call my home the expressions on the faces of the lost ones.    

  I lived you like nobody else had ever done. I called you my life, but I would never call you my destiny, because I chose to kill my destiny and if you were my destiny you’d be dead, but you, Jerusalem, you never die, in fact, you are to die for… but I’d much rather live for you.

I loved walking on your streets under the rain, where I saw the sky reflect on the street out of humble. I loved walking on your streets every time victory bailed on me and made me cry, so my salty tears would mix with your bittersweet raindrops and they’d taste just like life. Away from all this chaos and the curse of war loving you, underneath all these buildings and tombs, underneath years and years of sorrows that looked happy, underneath so many layers of yesterdays, I seek tomorrow.  Tomorrow doesn’t look holy to me. It doesn’t look like a sacred day when you’re finally liberated. What it looks like is what should have always been happening; Jerusalem, the one true capital of Palestine. But until then, tomorrow won’t happen. Just like how Handala’s genes always ignored tomorrow, I will too. Just like Salah El Deen made a vow he’d never smile until Jerusalem is free, I’ll make the same vow.

I will always be this 16 year old boy with so many fears, sorrows and every problem in the world. I’ll always be this 16 year old boy who thinks he’s going to change somebody’s world someday. I’ll always be this 16 year old boy who’s lost and confused but with a music taste that is much better than yours. I will always be this 16 year old boy writing a poem in one of your occupied alleys. And I will only stop being 16 when I see you free, but till then let me cuff myself for your freedom, but till then… let’s stop the time.

“Jerusalem, so complicated
My mind is about to explode
Jerusalem, you won’t be hated
‘Cause every street is a holy road
Peace, War somehow related
You better find your freedom code
Jerusalem, So complicated
I’m waiting for my life to load
Because our memories are made out of gold”

This was the chorus to the first song I wrote about you, and I’m going to keep writing, because you’re the reason I write, I fight and I dream.. and then I have a nightmare… oh yeah, my city does sleep.

“Little kids are playing in Jerusalem, big kids are playing with Jerusalem”             

with love,

Mohammed.

Lest We Forget: Happy New Year

    Merry Christmas everybody, I hope you all have a blast and forget for a while what world are you from. Because, frankly, reality is way too tough for us to be dealing with, and that is something we’ve said for too many damn years… and then tomorrow went missing, and we forgot the river underneath us, running and taking everything with it. So, away from the jingle bells and the celebrations, we should know that it would only get bitter[er]. Whatever, Santa did put under that mistletoe is no surprise; he put nothing at all.

  Since it’s almost 2015 in few days, I figured a make a ‘new year’s resolutions’ list- but then, since I’m too tired of the ‘new year, new me’ type of crap, I decided to realize the world’s previous new year’s resolutions. Instead of the ‘I want to do this, I want to do that’ bullshit, why don’t I give you a little list I like to name: a Reality Check.

It’s almost 2015 and no wannabe destinies were fulfilled, no shiny promises are kept, and for sure our expectations of a better tomorrow were crushed. We found ourselves as humans sinking in disappointment wondering: who to blame?

It’s almost 2015 and Zionism still exists and it’s widely practiced. Israel is still around, with its inhumane, savage, fascist crimes. It’s almost 2015 and the USA still conquers the world with terrorism, making ‘peace’ as their excuse but it is only greed that drives them to kill people and steal their lands and resources. It’s almost 2015 and peace is nothing but evil, war and oppression in a mask.

It’s almost 2015 and Hindus and Muslims are fighting over religion in India, Shias and Sunnis are fighting over Islam in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Bahrain and many other countries. It’s almost 2015 and people still despise, discriminate and even kill each other because of their religion. It’s almost 2015 and people [mostly in the Arab World] don’t even have the right to choose their religious beliefs/disbeliefs. It’s almost 2015 and things like The KKK and ISIS still exist.

It’s almost 2015 and racism is alive and well. It’s almost 2015 and justice still is abandoning Mike Brown and many other Black people. It’s almost 2015 and African American teenagers get killed for playing with toy guns. It’s almost 2015 and equal rights did not yet come, and the word ‘negro’ is still a funny thing to say coming out of a white mouth. it’s almost 2015 and America did not even witness one true black president (if you’re counting Obama, you’re naïve).

It’s almost 2015 and stereotypes still exist: people hate Islam because of Osama Bin Laden, people hate Judaism because of Zionism, people hate all Americans because of Gorge W. Bush and Barak Obama (but really do you ever see stereotyping of white people because of the KKK or McVeigh?). It’s almost 2015 and we judge people based on their color, religion etc.

It’s almost 2015 and the world is still giving Noble prizes to people like Shimon Perez. It’s almost 2015 and Christopher Columbus is still seen a national hero and not a filthy thief and/or settler. It’s almost 2015 and Native Australians and Indigos are still treated like shit in their own lands.

It’s almost 2015 and women around the world are assaulted, discriminated and oppressed. 20,000 women die per year because of ‘honor’ killings (e.g. an Arab woman who got raped is more likely to be killed than to receive justice). It’s almost 2015 and women in Saudi Arabia are not allowed to drive. It’s almost 2015 and sexism, bigotry and homophobia still exist, prostitution still exists and burqas still exist. It’s almost 2015 and women cannot practice their rights; women in the Arab world will be blamed for getting raped; women in the Arab world will be called names if they’re successful and independent; women in the Arab world are expected-virgin-brides; women in the Arab world will be attacked if they stand up for themselves. It’s almost 2015 and women are called the most disgusting humiliating names if they choose not to get married or get pregnant.

It’s almost 2015 and democratic Israel jails people because of their Facebook posts that demands resistance. It’s almost 2015 and civil marriage does not exist in the Arab world nor does freedom of speech or freedom of expression. It’s almost 2015 and journalists are fired from their jobs or even jailed for saying the truth, and the mainstream media is still the biggest hypocrite in the world. It’s almost 2015 and the withering, weary, and sad Arab ‘spring’ is still ongoing.  It’s almost 2015 and dictators still exist in the world.

It’s almost 2015 and gender is what’s between a person’s thighs. It’s almost 2015 and femininity still is something that must be in a woman, just like masculinity is required in a man. It’s almost 2015 and a boy is made fun of for being sensitive and a girl is brought down for being physically strong.

It’s almost 2015 and we’re still voiceless, we’re still silent, we’re still waiting for divine...

 Don’t get me wrong though; I’m not saying this to be pessimistic, I am saying this to be realistic. Even though it’s 2015, hope shines from the flesh of corruption and fire after all only eats itself. There is positivity, but we need to work towards it, do something about it. And only, then we can assure tomorrow is coming.

…. Happy New Year everybody! 

WHEN THERE'S NO JUSTICE THERE WILL BE NO PEACE

    

        In my last blog post “RESISTANCE vs. TERRORISM” I think there were some misconceptions about what my point of view is. Let me be clear: I do not support violence in any form, and I do not try to justify any deaths whose victims were innocent, but I also do not at all support double-standards and hypocrisy. I do not think the Palestinian attacks of the latest days as something heroic; only for the slightest chance of the existence of one innocent person on the other side, but, I still do fully believe that if there is someone to blame for these ‘terrorism’ acts it is Israel and its bully behavior.

    I am not afraid of my statements; I know I am going to be labeled as ‘anti-peace’ thing. I am not anti-peace; however, peace is against me. You see, the peace they want means the silencing of our story; means depriving us from our rights; means apartheid; means racism; means injustice; means conspiracy. The peace they go out and about promoting is nothing but a mask that they and their beliefs hide under. The peace they’re talking about means that they can still steal lands, deprive us from rights, and kill the amounts they want. Their peace means the erasing of the Palestinian identity and heritage. It means that many other malls will be built on so many other cemeteries and not just Ma’man Allah Cemetery. It means that they’re going to change the streets’ names. It means the Arabic language will be forbidden. It means they’re going to be the powerful ones, the ones with weapons, the ones with tanks, the ones with money, the ones with VITO (I told you, it was a mad conspiracy), it means more houses will be demolished because they’re on ‘green land’, it means more olive trees will be demolished because they’re on ‘green land’… etc. it means that nothing will change from the actual everyday reality we live, but one thing: they wouldn’t be called ‘occupation’ anymore, which will make their crimes even more legit and acceptable in the eyes of the numb, silent and hypocritical international community. Damn, of course I am against their so-called peace. Let me tell you something: peace will be fulfilled when there is equality and justice between us and them. When we have the same amount of everything they have; when 194 The Right Of Return is accomplished and refuges return to their houses; when my grandmother goes back to Haifa; when they rebuild our neighbors’ house and give them back their memories; when they bring back to life every innocent child they’ve killed; when they replant the olive trees; when they stop settlements; when they stop settler colonizing; when they free all the Palestinian prisoners in their fascist prisons; when they destroy the apartheid wall; when they end the siege on Gaza; when they stop digging under the old city; when they stop stopping Christians from praying in the Church of Holy Suplecher on their holidays; when they stop denying Muslims’ entries to the Holy Al-Aqsa Mosque; when they stop diving the A-Haram Al-Ibrahimi between them and us; when all of the Brooklyn settlers go back to Brooklyn; when all the so-called mentally ill settlers stay inside mental illness institutions instead of leaving them in the streets of Hebron horrifying little girls; when their so-called The Castle Of David goes back to being The Castle Of Jerusalem; when their so-called City Of David goes back to being Silwan; when they remove all their checkpoints and barriers… I could go on, tirelessly counting the things that need to be accomplished so peace could be accomplished as well. You see, peace is not just a thing two people agree on, it’s about justice, and justice has a price- a price they wouldn’t have to pay if they didn’t kill peace and justice in the first place.

     So, I am not anti-peace what I am is: I am anti-war, anti-crimes, anti-hypocrisy anti-brutality, anti-Zionism, anti-fascism, anti-Nazism, anti-conspiracy, anti-thievery, anti-inhumanity, anti-masks, anti-oppression, anti-lies, anti-underage-arresting, anti-siege, anti-occupation, anti-apartheid, anti-forging, anti-Judaizing the city, anti-Brooklyn setters, anti-racism, anti-decimation, anti-using religion as a weapon, anti-injustice, anti-inequality, anti-tanks, anti-killings, anti-double-standards, anti-forging-history, anti-checkpoints, anti-barriers, anti-IDF (really though, the ‘D’ is for defense… defense? From who? How ironic), anti-war crimes, anti-settlers anti-destruction, anti-bogusness … etc.

Need I say more? I am not against peace, peace is against me.

Peace, for us as Palestinian, is something we do really want. We are tired, exhausted and have had enough of all this chaos, we need comfort, relief, happiness, security etc. but however, that doesn’t mean giving up. Peace is not a synonyms to the word surrender, nor it is a white flag raised in the middle of the battle, peace is what happens after the battle, or what had happened before the battle. So what do I want? What do I demand? What do I need? What do I deserve? Peace; peace that is full, in all of its aspects. Peace that only befits the righteous truths. Peace that is the flower of the seeds of justice. Peace I want.

Peace in this country called Palestine, containing the cities of Jerusalem, Hebron, Bethlehem, and Ramallah …. Acre, Haifa, Jaffa and Nazareth …. Gaza, Jenin, Toul Karm … all of the Palestinian cities, the will always be Palestinian. Peace, where Muslims, Christians, Jews and many other beliefs and disbeliefs will enrich this beautiful civilized Palestinian society, under the flag of Palestine. And it is Palestine, and it will forever be.

But, if you’re still, double-standard asshole, passing on judgments about me and my lifestyle, let me tell you this: you don’t know shit about living the life I live, you don’t know shit about being oppressed and humiliated with no one to help you, you don’t know shit about being under occupation, about losing your house or your loved one because of occupation so don’t even dare to open your mouth before you take a walk in my cruel world. 

RESISTANCE vs. TERRORISM: A Look at Violence In Jerusalem.

       Blaming Palestinian people (or black people, or any type of oppressed people on earth) for resisting and fighting back is simply like blaming a girl for fighting back her rapist. Disgusting as it is; the Mainstream Media only shows the public eye one part of the whole picture (after it being photoshopped and rewritten to fit the Zionist script of course). You’ve all heard about the Palestinian guy who ran over a group of settlers few weeks ago in Jerusalem, right? But, have you heard about that Israeli settler who ran over the five-year-old Inas Dar Khaleel and killed her? Of course not; and here starts my discussion.

When such acts happen in Palestine, like, when a settler runs over a five year old (check) or when soldiers shoot and kill a bride-to-be on a checkpoint (check) or when Israeli Zionist settlers violate and mistreat holy places that mean so much to Muslims and Christians in Jerusalem (check) or when soldiers randomly kill a Palestinian guy –who has an Israeli citizenship- without doing nothing (check and caught on tape) or when settlers set on fire the sixteen-year-old Mohammad Abou-Khudere and burn him alive (also check) or when six extremist gangster settlers lynch a Palestinian bus driver (check as well)… and nothing happens to those criminals, not even legal questioning not even arrested… what do you expect from people who are occupied, traumatized, outcast, oppressed, discriminated etc. to do?! Really? When there is no justice, there will be fighting back, there will be resistance, there will be rebelliousness and there will be revenge. I am not trying to justify or explain whatever is going on around Jerusalem lately; I am being completely honest and clear about it. No apologies for crimes caused because of Israel’s oppression. Whatever that fascist, racist, government is holding is nothing but deceiving, behavioral, institutional and masked terrorism. These ‘terrorists’ that Israel is facing right now are its work. They’re the result of living under oppression, occupation, inequality and evil. The only thing Israel should blame for whatever chaos and self-destruction Israel had laid on its soul is Israel. We’re the terrorists, Israel’s the gun; we are the killers, Israel’s the knife; we are the criminals, Israel is the crime.

Too clear and easy, anyone could see through this vicious window of blurry misconceptions and ideologies Israel is trying to show to the world. But honey, our sun is rising, and the light is cleaning and clearing the window for all to see. It is time for people to see Israel for what it really is; unmasking the real criminal, terrorist, killer etc.
This is reactionary; whatever and everything that has been happening around Jerusalem, the violence and all. It was about time for it to happen- people are too angry, and suffocated from all the unjust laws and policies that they are suffering from. When no one is helping them, and the state is doing everything to oppress them and discriminate them, when there are no laws or courts they can go to so they can receive their rights, when all the criminals are still outside, living their lives normally as if they did nothing; that is when really all Palestinians realize that if there is anyone who’s going to bring them their rights, dignity and livelihoods back is no one but themselves. So before all of you ‘oh my god Palestinians are so cruel’ start talking, firstly, you’ve got to understand the whole situation before you start passing on judgments, secondly you’ve got to realize that this is what happen when a government is so unjust, thirdly, stand in our shoes; if you were oppressed like this, saw your loved ones dying, were forced to leave your house… saw your hopes aborted, wouldn’t you fight back? Wouldn’t you throw a stone?.... I am talking directly to your conscience right now and I know your answer is a positive.

So what is it? Resistance or terrorism? When that settler ran over that innocent poor five years old, that is terrorism, but when that Palestinian ran over settlers it was a reaction; an act of resistance; he had to let all of that anger suffocating out. I don’t think what he did was heroic, whatsoever, but I know, that it was caused because of Israel’s masked terrorism.
Yes, I totally agree with ‘an eye for an eye would make the whole world blind’ but I also agree with the fact that if fire is not put down it will devour everything that it passes by, we cannot sit around helpless and do nothing about israel’s bullying, we must fight back and take a stand and do the best we can to resist. And when it’s my right, it’ll be nails, teeth, flesh, blood and pens fighting for it.