The demonstrators, the majority of whom are enrolled in the Master of Arts in Arab Studies program, were conducting a “die-in” to represent the lives lost in the current conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Lucy Thiboutot (GRD ’09), one of the participants, said that she is not taking sides and is protesting what she views as a “humanitarian crime.”
“The problem is a general American misunderstanding. America has a view that demonizes one group. People don’t want to look at the situation as a set of facts,” she said. “[Americans] identify themselves with one group or another. Because we are in the Arab Studies program, we have a lot of information.”
Dear Lucy:
You sound like an asshole when you assert that everybody else is ignorant and only you know the Truth. Furthermore, an appeal to the authority of you being in the MA in Arab Studies program doesn't help either. Perhaps you might accept that other people, given the same facts as you have, reach different conclusions and that these people may not be stupid, ignorant, or evil. Also, I think that you should protest Muammar al-Qaddafi's address to Georgetown with the same vociferousness.
Sincerely,
FLG
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My name is Lucy Thiboutot and I assure you I am not an asshole, although I am a graduate student in Arab Studies. I am writing because the quotes attributed to me above are a significant misrepresentation of what I said when asked for comment by Ms. Buras.
I do not in any way wish to suggest that Arab Studies students have "more information" or 'special' information. The supposed quote ("[Americans] identify themselves with one group or another. Because we are in the Arab Studies program, we have a lot of information.") implies exactly the opposite of what I feel: there is a great deal of imbalance in the way information is made available. I do not claim to have the "truth" of what is currently going on in Gaza, although the American media make it appear as though there is one "truth" while every other view is dismissed.
As a student of Arab Studies, the current crisis is a situation of importance to me, among many other important crises around the world. I am not a Palestinian American or a Jewish America (perhaps this explains the "not taking sides" quote). But I am a concerned American who sees that many lives are being lost with the American government's consent, as Gazans are suffering a humanitarian crisis due to Israel's actions in the past few weeks. The American media are not being given access to full coverage of the situation, making it all the more imperative that awareness is raised here about the extremity of the situation for Gazans.
As Ms. Buras quotes Olivia Moseley as stating, the purpose of our demonstration was to show solidarity with "the people of Gaza who have been suffering from the Israeli blockade for years." We wore the names of Palestinians who have recently been killed, and also two Israelis. I wish for awareness to be raised, and the perspectives of those who are silenced to be available. Over a thousand Gazans have recently reached the greatest silence of all: death.
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