This is our life, in Hebron

By Abigail Ozanne

One morning recently, I was reflecting that in the nearly four months I
had been in Hebron I have been cursed, insulted, spat at, pushed, threatened
with arrest, detained, tear gassed, had my home invaded by soldiers,  stoned,
and threatened with death.  But if I had been a Palestinian, things would
have been worse.
 Recently the soldiers arrested a Palestinian journalist for taking pictures.
The soldiers grabbed him, handcuffed and blindfolded him, and led him away.
I expressed how sorry I was to his brother.  The brother replied, "This is
our life."  He said that at different times in the past Israeli forces had
shot, beaten, and arrested him.
     Last month, after I was present in a situation where soldiers beat two
men--one to unconsciousness, tear-gas everyone in an enclosed space, and
arrest several people, including the journalist, I said what a terrible  day
it had been.  Our Palestinian neighbor answered, "This is our life.">
   I am a member of the Undoing Racism Working Group in CPT. Through this work,
I have become more aware of my unearned privilege as a white American.  In
Palestine this means that I am asked for my ID less.  The soldiers cannot
arrest me although police can.  The soldiers are not likely to beat me. If
I am arrested, I do not need to fear being tortured.  I am allowed to go
most places in the West Bank. Soldiers are less likely to invade our home.
     If they do invade, they are not likely to ransack it.  If I am hurt,
arrested, or killed, the international community will say that it is wrong.
   The racist Israeli military control of the West Bank and Gaza does not grant
the Palestinians we work with any of these privileges. As I go about my work, I
seek to stand with the oppressed and dare to be vulnerable.  I try to listen to our Palestinian partners and friends about
their experiences.  I try to understand. And I acknowledge that what I
experience is only a portion of the suffering Palestinians experience. I
have privileges here not shared by the majority of the population.
     Additionally, at the end of my time in Palestine, I can go home.  For the
Palestinians, this is their life.
_______________

Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) seeks to enlist the whole church in
organized, nonviolent alternatives to war and places teams of trained
peacemakers in regions of lethal conflict.  Originally a violence-reduction
initiative of the historic peace churches (Mennonite, Church of the Brethren
and Quaker), CPT now enjoys support and membership from a wide range of
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