Perspective Shifting is a way of finding peace.
Why is this so controversial?
I’m about to talk about what could be considered a “sensitive” and controversial topic. Although frankly, I’m not really sure why. Some people seem to hold the belief that if you pass a judgement of “this behavior is unacceptable” you are automatically saying “I support the opponent.” Which couldn’t be further from the truth. I believe that discourse is fundamental to human understanding and human experience.
War always seems to be controversial to humans, because we have a long history of “taking sides.” As a society, we have oversimplified the idea of “winners” and “losers.” We have re-written history to favor certain people. Even today we can see how heavily the favor of a storyteller can play to one side or another. I believe, however, that we must do our own research. We must ask serious and provocative questions. Americans must dispel the notion that if someone doesn’t agree with you that they are “liars” or have been “brainwashed” by fake news. We must release the notion that people who don’t agree with us are “taking someone else’s” side.
So, without taking sides, let’s get into the Israeli & Palestinian conflict.
Why is this relevant to what we do?
In the Perspective Shifter’s commitment to helping people elevate their lives and businesses, we’re also committed to helping find a community. A community requires the ability to have difficult conversations. We all live on earth, we’re all humans – and we all need a perspective shift.
I also want to preface this statement that I understand the weight of the current situation. Genocide is happening in many different places right now. I understand that if we really want to discuss community, we should also be speaking out about other genocides. Genocides like the Sudanese genocide happening or the warnings that have been issued for Manipur, India both deserve our attetntion. I am choosing this particular conflict because The US is directly impacting this conflict in a very visible way. We see protests, government press conferences, and TikTok videos taking a side. Some support and some oppose.
I had saved the below image after some tough conversations with some people around the very radical rhetoric that has been happening in the US. The image shows how we move from one step into the other without sometimes realizing it. It shows how important it is to speak out. The US is teetering between stage 4 & 7 right now, and individuals are contributing to this.
Then the events in October in Gaza happened.
Please take a moment to reflect on what this indicates.
I haven’t said much here, and I don’t speak for all our experts, but I think most of them would agree that too many people are suffering around the world right now. People are suffering over disagreements, and morality disputes which could be resolved without using bombs and guns. Most importantly, every expert here understands that two things can be true at the same time. There can be a horrific terrorist attack and a horrific and unwarranted disproportionate response. We can have conflict and still have compassion. We can support people in one country AND disagree with the way a country’s government or military is handling a certain situation.
What Genocide Watch Says
I’m sharing this excerpt from GenocideWatch.com’s report on Israel and Palestine from May of 2023 and I’ll let you read up on what’s been going on for yourself.
“Since 2008, there have been an estimated 5333 Palestinian civilian fatalities in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, over half caused by Israeli bombs and missiles. During the same period, 293 Israeli civilians died from Palestinian attacks. In 2022, the Israel Defense Forces(IDF) killed an estimated 153 Palestinians, the highest Palestinian death toll since 2005. Most fatalities occurred during military raids against suspected Palestinian militants. On January 26, 2023, the Israel Defense Forces raided the Jenin Refugee Camp in the West Bank in the largest raid on refugees since 2002.
Prime Minister Netanyahu is committed to the continued expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. Israeli-imposed restrictions in the West Bank and Gaza prevent Palestinians from living in freedom. Forced evictions in the West Bank disproportionately affect women, whose homes also serve as their places of work. In 2007, Israel and Egypt imposed a naval blockade on the 2.35 million residents of Gaza that is still in effect, preventing most trade in and out of Gaza and impoverishing Gaza’s Palestinian population.
Genocide Watch recognizes the situation in Israel and Palestine to be at Stage 3: Discrimination, Stage 5: Organization, Stage 6: Polarization, and Stage 8: Persecution.
Genocide Watch recommends:
• Israeli and Palestinian leaders must relaunch direct talks to resolve their conflicts based on the national, political, and human rights of both Israelis and Palestinians.
• Palestinian leaders and Arab states must recognize Israel’s right to exist as a legitimate nation-state.
• Hamas and Islamic Jihad must immediately stop firing rockets and armed drones into Israel.
• Israel must halt the expansion of illegal settlements and dispossession of Palestinians in the West Bank.
• Israeli authorities must investigate Palestinian deaths and try IDF soldiers for illegal killings.
• The United States should condition its annual $4 billion in military aid and weapons sales to Israel on Israeli adherence to a ceasefire, peace talks, and a halt to new Jewish settlements in the West Bank.”
May 2023
View the full page article here.
An update in February of 2024 says:
“At this writing, over 1.7 million people in Gaza have been displaced since October 7. Over 26,000 civilians have been killed. According to the United Nations, of the civilians killed over ten thousand (41%) are children and over 6500 (25%) are women. At least 200 medics and more than 135 UN staff have been killed. None of these dead could possibly be considered combatants. How much “collateral damage” justifies killing so many children? When is “collateral damage” so disproportionate that it makes thousands of children orphans?”
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Why our future depends on “And” statements.
We can agree that the Hamas bombing in October was heinous AND that the Israeli treatment of Palestinians is also heinous. We all need to come together and understand that it is possible for a people to have undergone an act of genocide, AND for that situation to have so deeply traumatized a group of people, that they are willing to commit genocide when defending themselves against a threat.
It is critical for us to examine our own bias in what we believe and understand. A nation can be terrified and, in response, act in a way that then terrifies others. Until we can all examine our own part of the hurt, and the pain… and until we can atone for that pain as individuals and as nations, we will not be able to suppress violence in humanity. I believe that the ability for others to admit when dichotomies truly exist is critical to finding peace through perspective shifting.
Until we see the “and” statements – we’re just lying to ourselves because it is possible for us to feel deeply offended AND to recognize that it was our perspective that wounded us, and not the intentions of the transgressor.
What is Possible in war?
Peace is possible through perspective shifting. Nations can be attacked and can also be responsible for their own behavior when attacking “in defense.” People can believe one thing AND to demonstrate a different behavior that Is not in alignment with that belief. A group of people can defend their country AND to be traumatized by crossing lines they never, individually, thought was possible. Two people can be friends AND disagree on important issues. It is possible for an American to believe in democracy AND to be very upset at the way their government is governing. It is possible to disagree with the actions of someone AND still support their cause.
So how do we move forward?
Honestly, I’m not sure. But I suspect that the best way for any of us to move forward is to admit that both parties of this conflict have wronged. To hold the Israeli government responsible for its own terrorist attacks on a displaced people. To STOP arming people who are the aggressors even if the initial act of aggression was in defense.
I believe that the most important next step for all our conflicts – worldwide – is to understand that fundamentally, we all have different opinions and different perspectives. That at no point is that opinion and perspective worth killing for. That sometimes, self-defense can move into revenge and if not checked on this perspective, we all lose.
I believe we all must move forward toward peace through perspective shifting. By begining with a detailed review of ourselves. What assumptions we’ve made, what conclusions we’ve come to, and what behaviors may have created a judgement about the type of people we want to be versus the type of people we are.
I believe that only through seeing ourselves through an unfiltered lens will we be able to see others from a neutral and unfiltered place as well. And maybe, just maybe, if we center around that, we’ll see people as human again.
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