Really powerful and necessary interview. Thanks for sharing Nada's story. It is so critical to think about Gaza as more than an abstract, far away problem, and to understand how devastating the invasion is.
Thank you for this interview. So many Americans have no idea that even under the occupation the people of Gaza had built lives that would be very recognizable to us. It’s so important to hear individual stories. Now everything has been destroyed, and as difficult and scary life is for Nada and her family, the majority of Gazans are living in much worse circumstances (starving and dying from preventable illnesses that can’t be treated because the health care system has been destroyed). Congress is pushing for $14b more military aid for Israel. I urge everyone to contact their representatives and senators to let them know this is unacceptable and to call for the level of humanitarian aid that is desperately needed.
I really enjoy hearing about the mundanity of people’s lives because it’s important that ordinary people are remembered in this genocide just as much as those who are heroic and extraordinary
What an important reminder of all we have in common: to find dignity and fulfillment in our work, for our children to taste the food of their grandmothers, to delight in the joy of a child building a sand castle. We do best to remember amidst so many forces trying to divide us. Thank you, Nada.
Thank you so much for featuring this interview. It is very important to highlight the daily horrors and small joys endured by the citizens of Gaza. The ongoing genocide will have devastating consequences for both Israel and the US.
I am going to try to say this in the best possible way, as it is not my intention to offend anyone. Yes, the situation in the Middle-East is bad.
It has been bad in the past, and I'm afraid it will continue to be bad in the future. Too many players in this mess have no desire for peace.
Your column today highlights the plight of children. Let's look at another problem area that people have forgotten or think not as important.
Over 20,000 children have been abducted from their families and taken to a foreign country, taught to forget their families, and can only speak this foreign language. Over 20,000. And more every day. Where is the outrage over this? Why isn't this in the news? A country that, through no fault of its own, has been invaded, bombed, civilian citizens killed, and children kidnapped. A country that wanted democracy and peace so much that it gave up all of its nuclear weapons. As part of this total disarmament agreement, the US signed a pact stating it would defend this country if attacked.
But now, apparently, the US no longer feels it needs to abide by a guarantee it made in the past. And more innocent people continue to die every day. And more innocent children are kidnapped every day. And we (the US) are standing by and letting it happen.
Dave, you are not wrong to raise the issue of abducted Ukrainian children. In comfortable countries (like mine, Switzerland) and faraway countries (like yours, the US), it is easy to forget about those children denied a normal, safe life due to a war inflicted upon the places they call home.
And yet. It is exhausting to think of them every day. Even from the safety of our own homes. It is exhausting, depressing, debilitating.
What can we do, besides feel the outrage? Hear their stories. Never forget what makes us human.Remind each other.
Thank you for your comments. Personally, I love Switzerland. I have visited friends in Unterägeri, which, as you probably know, is in the canton of Zug. Your country has gotten so many things right.
We should be smart enough by now not to have war, hunger, and poverty. I realize that it's a hard road. However, I believe that we can make it.
I find it so sad that we need to hear from brave-faced Nada to stir up compassion for the horrors that are going on in Gaza (and the West Bank, and Sudan, and the DRC, and Ukraine, and Haiti, and, and, and....) but it's mostly through individual stories that the horror hits home. So, thank you, lyz.
Really powerful and necessary interview. Thanks for sharing Nada's story. It is so critical to think about Gaza as more than an abstract, far away problem, and to understand how devastating the invasion is.
Thank you for this interview. So many Americans have no idea that even under the occupation the people of Gaza had built lives that would be very recognizable to us. It’s so important to hear individual stories. Now everything has been destroyed, and as difficult and scary life is for Nada and her family, the majority of Gazans are living in much worse circumstances (starving and dying from preventable illnesses that can’t be treated because the health care system has been destroyed). Congress is pushing for $14b more military aid for Israel. I urge everyone to contact their representatives and senators to let them know this is unacceptable and to call for the level of humanitarian aid that is desperately needed.
I really enjoy hearing about the mundanity of people’s lives because it’s important that ordinary people are remembered in this genocide just as much as those who are heroic and extraordinary
Thank you and Nada for this, Lyz!
What an important reminder of all we have in common: to find dignity and fulfillment in our work, for our children to taste the food of their grandmothers, to delight in the joy of a child building a sand castle. We do best to remember amidst so many forces trying to divide us. Thank you, Nada.
Thank you so much for featuring this interview. It is very important to highlight the daily horrors and small joys endured by the citizens of Gaza. The ongoing genocide will have devastating consequences for both Israel and the US.
I am going to try to say this in the best possible way, as it is not my intention to offend anyone. Yes, the situation in the Middle-East is bad.
It has been bad in the past, and I'm afraid it will continue to be bad in the future. Too many players in this mess have no desire for peace.
Your column today highlights the plight of children. Let's look at another problem area that people have forgotten or think not as important.
Over 20,000 children have been abducted from their families and taken to a foreign country, taught to forget their families, and can only speak this foreign language. Over 20,000. And more every day. Where is the outrage over this? Why isn't this in the news? A country that, through no fault of its own, has been invaded, bombed, civilian citizens killed, and children kidnapped. A country that wanted democracy and peace so much that it gave up all of its nuclear weapons. As part of this total disarmament agreement, the US signed a pact stating it would defend this country if attacked.
But now, apparently, the US no longer feels it needs to abide by a guarantee it made in the past. And more innocent people continue to die every day. And more innocent children are kidnapped every day. And we (the US) are standing by and letting it happen.
Over 20,000 children. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_abductions_in_the_Russo-Ukrainian_War#:~:text=During%20the%20Russo%2DUkrainian%20War,with%20their%20parents%20and%20homeland.
Dave, you are not wrong to raise the issue of abducted Ukrainian children. In comfortable countries (like mine, Switzerland) and faraway countries (like yours, the US), it is easy to forget about those children denied a normal, safe life due to a war inflicted upon the places they call home.
And yet. It is exhausting to think of them every day. Even from the safety of our own homes. It is exhausting, depressing, debilitating.
What can we do, besides feel the outrage? Hear their stories. Never forget what makes us human.Remind each other.
Thank you for your comments. Personally, I love Switzerland. I have visited friends in Unterägeri, which, as you probably know, is in the canton of Zug. Your country has gotten so many things right.
We should be smart enough by now not to have war, hunger, and poverty. I realize that it's a hard road. However, I believe that we can make it.
I find it so sad that we need to hear from brave-faced Nada to stir up compassion for the horrors that are going on in Gaza (and the West Bank, and Sudan, and the DRC, and Ukraine, and Haiti, and, and, and....) but it's mostly through individual stories that the horror hits home. So, thank you, lyz.
Thank you for this interview.
Thank you for this poignant view of life in Gaza. <3