IT’S insane how Star Wars got it first. “Andor,” a magnificent show depicting oppression and rebellion in a way that is very timely, contains the hauntingly relevant quote: “The pace of oppression outstrips our ability to understand it, and that is the real trick of the Imperial Thought Machine. It’s easier to hide behind 40 atrocities than a single incident.”
I am a poet and I love to mince words. I don’t believe it will be useful here so I will be as direct as I can.
Growing up on the island of Guam with a parent in the military, it was easy to turn a blind eye to the suffering of others. Guam is a U.S. territory, after all — and it was easy to enjoy its privileges without questioning their cost. When homeless people knock on your car window, it is easy to think of your safety first. When you see war in the Middle East perpetuated by the U.S. imperial war machine, it is easy to feel dread and change the channel. When you see a third school or public shooting, it is easy to feel defeated and continue scrolling. When you hear a hundredth story about an immigrant detained by ICE and confined without due process, it is easy for their identity to get lost into a shrouding crowd of “statistics.” When the 57,001st Palestinian is murdered and written about on your TikTok feed, it is easy to turn a blind eye to the suffering.
Imperialism thrives on its ability to create suffering beyond what we are able to understand as human beings. This tactic presents us with a choice. It tells us that to acknowledge suffering and feel in the pain of those suffering around the world is futile. When so many horrible things are happening, what good will it do for me to be a little sadder? This is exactly how oppression continues to thrive around the world, through teaching those around the world to look away.
The practice of turning our head and trying not to acknowledge suffering around the world is the capitalist/imperialist dogma trying to remove you from your humanity. Remember that you are a human being. Every human being suffering around the planet is your kin. I am not admonishing you. I am begging you to look towards suffering. Acknowledge your fellow human being who is in pain.
When Elsy Noemi Berrios, a mother from Maryland is abducted by ICE, we should acknowledge this wrongdoing. On January 24, 2024, when Hind Rajab is murdered alongside six of her family members and two paramedics by Israeli Defense Forces, we need to look and listen. Looking and listening is not something I ask you to do to quit your job, leave your family behind, and go die in Gaza fighting the IDF for. It is just to open your heart and your mind. Once you begin to do that, you may begin to change your mind on some things.
When your heart is open to the suffering of other fellow human beings, you may begin to see that “The Big Beautiful Bill” hurts countless fellow Americans, neighbors of yours, strangers in other states, your future family, children, offspring and all. You may begin to see how its revocation of support for Medicaid and clean energy spending revokes healthcare access for so many people who need it, and harms the world you may bring your family into. You may begin to see the reason for boycotting companies on the Boycott, Divest, Sanction (B.D.S., — a movement calling for economic and political pressure to end Israel’s occupation and human rights abuses) list of companies that support Zionist bloodshed in Palestine, and how your dollar can go to something other than evil perpetuated far away in the world.
I do not hold all of the answers to the world’s issues and I do not claim to solve them in this passage. However, I will put forth that it still matters to care. It matters that you think of your fellow human being, no matter how far removed we are from them. You can go about your daily life, but when you come across horrific news, take the time to look and see. The next steps will always be up to you, but for me: taking the time to repost or have a conversation about it with the people in my life have been revolutionary for me. I find that taking the time to have these discussions sparks something in the hearts of other people. It claims: There are atrocities I cannot go silent about, even if I do not put my life on pause for it. There are even further steps if you are so inclined. Donate a dollar to a cause you believe in. Whether it be buying a keffiyeh crafted by a Palestinian to support a family on the Gaza strip. Contribute to a fund for legal defense for those most threatened by ICE detainment or to aid protesters in need.
I once heard that humans are creatures that crave narrative. And I believe it is relevant to overcoming oppression in all forms. When the narrative is dominated by your oppressor, they will claim that being against Zionist bloodshed is “anti-Semitic” (despite no specific claims against Judaism or Jewish people), or that trans-people are a “danger in restrooms.” We need to remember our story as a people, as a local, national, and global community. When we get our story straight, the narrative becomes much clearer. And I plead with you, the first steps are found in not looking away when you hear about atrocities that are far away from you.
