I am a peace activist and have been for most of my life. I believe that people around the world are constantly being manipulated to side with one national, religious, political, organizational or territorial group or another. I believe that the only ones who benefit from these wars are those profiting from the industrial-military complex (weapon making facilities, investors of weapon making industries, political leaders, sensationalistic media corporations, land barrens, etc.). I also believe that true believers in peace need to join together as one people who target these influencers and use their strength in numbers and refusal to engage and strongly resist the urge to take sides on one or the other side of the conflict.

In Israel-Palestine, it is some of Israelis and some of Palestinians who have been manipulated to keep this conflict going. In actuality, Israelis and Palestinians are both people who have been manipulated and abused throughout history and subjects of these war-mongering tactics. Both people have been subjected to intense and horrific treatments, rejection, death and torture throughout history. One would think the two groups of sufferers would unite together to fight this system of war instead of inflicting the awful hatred upon each other. But too many powers are working to set up one against the other to perpetuate the hatred instead of to find common ground. True peace consists of recognizing this manipulation and not allowing oneself to be pulled into one sided retaliation against the other side.

Yes, Israel is a nation which is stronger and more powerful at this moment in history and should “know better.” The Palestinian people are currently continuing to be the subject of abuse. Israel must stop its abuse. Hamas is a powerful organization that is supposedly representing the Palestinians at this moment in time. Hamas itself is an organization that would like to obliterate the state of Israel. Both the powerful Israeli government (powerful as it is because of the support the U.S. provides) and Hamas (funded by other nations and extremist groups ) are responsible for the horrific violence taking place.

The people of both artificially constructed divides are and have been the subjects of violence and discrimination against each other since the establishment of the State of Israel. We, who are witnesses and reactors from around the world need to come together with both factions of people living the conflict and stop this war machine from furthering the conflict. There are many more of us who can come together, refuse to take sides, and instead work together to stop the war machine. When we join a side, we fuel the hatred of the other side and we fuel the war machine. Our message needs to be united, “De-escalate the war! No more hatred! No more funding for wars! Fund peaceful solution finding efforts!”

Miriam Kurland lives in Williamsburg.