AL-BIREH, West Bank -- The Palestinian people have no grudge against the American public. We never did. As a matter of fact, if one resists the media spin and takes a closer look at what the Palestinians have been struggling for, it will be revealed that the Palestinian intifada is a very American struggle. After all, it is a struggle for national independence, civil liberties, human rights, as well as a struggle to establish an open market in an independent economy, free to market forces and free from Israeli domination.
The Palestinians are doing what any American citizen would do: We are fighting for our rights. At times, some Palestinian individuals and organizations reach a point of equating life under Israeli occupation to death and unfortunately choose to take Israeli civilian lives along with their own. This is a sad but bitter reality of the environment that a prolonged foreign military occupation creates. No matter how many times U.S. President George W. Bush or a war criminal like Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon call upon Palestinians to condemn these acts, the reality remains that taking civilian lives is definitely not the norm in the Palestinian struggle. The history of the Palestinian struggle is rich; it is something that every American can relate to. Let me explain.
First, the Palestinians are not begging for a homeland of their own. They had a homeland in 1948 before the establishment of the State of Israel. As a matter of fact, before 1948 they were living mostly peacefully in a secular environment: Jews, Muslims and Christians. It is the establishment of the State of Israel that created the first wave of Palestinian refugees who are still suffering a daily hell, 54 years later. These Palestinian refugees, plus their offspring, are the same people that are (or were) living in the Jenin refugee camp before Israel committed its latest atrocity. In 1948, these Palestinian refugees did not immediately take up arms against Israel when they were forcefully evicted from their homes. Just the opposite.