Two friends in the Palestinian solidarity community weigh in anonymously on Obama´s speech:
1, It’s a) another effort for “evenhandedness” in the Palestine issue where evenhandedness is a joke given the disparities in power. b) it´s remarkable that he didn´t completely shut the door on talking to Hamas, but c) he basically tries to take all the tools away from the Palestinians to put pressure on Israel by repeatedly and strongly condemning their UN strategy (and making clearer demands on Hamas than he has ever made on Israel since he folded on settlements). And it´s kind of striking how his repeated and very strong endorsement of “self determination” and revolution (a la Boston Tea Party and Rosa Parks) somehow didn´t continue when he finally arrived at the issue of Palestine.
I´m not a prophet, but this will not move the “peace process” forward. He´s just trying to buy time to the next election. But he also realizes that this issue is a ticking bomb.
A last thought: He implicitly countered Palestian efforts to “internationalize” the conflict bey reiterating his insistence on a continuing, strong American presence and position in the region.
2. Look at Obama framing Palestinian suffering as the humiliation of occupation, never living in a country of their own. He skips right over the dispossession of 1948.
Then what was he hinting at with the line about the growing number of Palestinians west of the Jordan? Was he talking demographics? If so, why didn’t he say it forthrightly?
We’re going to talk about the Israelis want most, security, along with borders while putting off the key Palestinian concerns about Jerusalem and refugees? Once Israel has secured its settlements, does he seriously think they’ll talk about Jerusalem and Right of Return?
No mention of Palestinian nonviolence in all the talk about regional nonviolence. He’s just totally abandoned them in the two years since the Cairo speech. Palestinian nonviolence somehow doesn’t count. Terrible that he dropped it post-Cairo.
Finally, his reference to all men being created equal really set me off. He said this must guide our actions in North Africa and the Middle East. Really, when he spent part of his speech talking up a Jewish and democratic state? How does Jewish privilege in a Jewish state square with all people being created equal? It doesn’t. But because people who wouldn’t stand for a white, Christian state in the US suddenly fall stupid or hypocritical regarding Israel it just slides right on by. And why is this? Take a look at the AIPAC conference and the race of members of Congress to be there this weekend. And what’s being promoted? Jewish exceptionalism and rights for Jews that aren’t extended to Palestinians. White folks were made to give this stuff up in the US. And the country is much better for it. When will it happen in Israel? It’s being delayed by this administration and Congress refusing to look at the facts and discriminatory realities.
