Temporary ceasefire reached: A young Palestinian-American’s voice is revisited
Protestors march through Newark, NJ on October 29, 2023. (Josie Gonsalves for Public Square Amplified)
NEWARK, NJ–The world has been watching the latest war on the Occupied Territory of Palestine-Gaza for the past seven weeks. According to the latest reports, to date, over 14,500 have been killed in Occupied Gaza and some 1,200 in Israel.
Today, representatives from Israel and Palestine reached a four-day truce set to begin tomorrow at 7 am. The agreement, brokered by Qatar, outlines several key objectives, including the release of hostages on both sides—50 Israelis and 150 Palestinians, humanitarian aid to Gaza, and a halt on military engagement.
As long as the October 7 war has endured, there have been global marches demanding a ceasefire and end to the occupation of Palestine and the release of Israeli and Palestinian hostages. On October 29, several hundred people gathered on the steps of Newark’s City Hall to add their voices to this larger struggle. A young Palestinian-American took centerstage to give reflections on her family's connection to Gaza. Following is her original speech.
Hello. My name is Xana, and I am a Palestinian-American.
I want to begin with a poem:
My cries are uncontrollable tonight!!!
Gaza is stenched, shattered, and now completely without light.
when I think where are the best kind of people to be around......they're here! They've always been here.
I've contemplated at times to live near...but what prevents me is always the source of my weakness which is my fear.
They're level of perseverance is a gift from the Almighty Allah Himself!
Better than anything, better than power, status, or all of the worldly wealth.
They're self-crafts is a force of purity, maturity, and beautiful souls always to be equipped to act morally!
We know God Almighty decreed this situation to be part of His plan.
He will aid, He will defend, He will end, He will give us Freedom. He will return to us or our land.
Just to put a disclaimer, I am not here to speak on what is happening in Palestine. I am not a historian who can give an unbiased perspective on the last 75 years of occupation. I am not a public speaker with an eloquent vocabulary trying to brainwash anyone. I am a storyteller.
As a child, I was put to bed with bedtime stories as a way to help me sleep. Ironically, I'm telling the world this story so it can wake up.
And as all stories start, once upon a time there was a young girl living in Gaza City on the Gaza Strip. This little girl had 13 siblings living in tight quarters. Though she had a humble upbringing, she was filled with love for her family and country. One day, the little girl became severely sick and was in need of medical attention. So her father took her to the closest hospital, which was in their neighborhood, about ten minutes away walking distance. As the father and the little girl were reaching the hospital, they were met by an Israeli soldier. The Israeli soldier told them that they were not allowed past beyond the point, and if they didn't return home now there would be severe consequences. The father pleaded with the Israeli soldier to allow them to pass and explained to him that his daughter was in need of medical attention. The Israeli soldier didn’t believe the father and pointed the big gun at the little girl's stomach. By divine intervention, and right before the soldier could shoot her, the little girl threw up. That little girl was 10 years old and had narrowly escaped death.
Years later, the little girl had grown up and had become a mother of four and now resided in New Jersey. One summer, she and her youngest child traveled back to Gaza to visit family. At the very beginning of this trip, there was a bombing of an area very close to where the Palestinian family resided. Her young daughter, 9 years old, felt the shaking and demolition of the bomb. She was asleep when she felt the bed lift up from the pressure of the bomb, she screamed in terror as she tried to find solace from her mother. That bomb was a 15-20 minute walking distance from where that 9-year-old girl was sleeping. That bomb could've easily hit and killed her. That 9-year-old girl was me. And my mom was the sick little girl almost murdered by the Israeli soldier so many years earlier.
As I look at the news, I see my people from Gaza not being able to escape death the way my mom and I did. And there is some sort of survivor’s guilt that has plagued me every night since Saturday [October 7]. I could easily be one of those deaths. After much prayer and contemplation, I’ve come to the terms that it was me and my mom’s destiny to survive our “almost deaths.”
The lesson I learned: I will not take the life I have for granted. And I will fight for the oppressed, I will speak on behalf of the voiceless, and I will spread the truth in any way I can.
I will relay the stories that are very distant from here. I can tell you about my cousin’s old home in a city in Gaza called Al-Rimal. It is demolished. Not just the home but the whole city. That home was my cousin’s last connection to their late father, who passed many years ago. The beautiful balcony that overlooked the enchanting city is gone. Their bedroom that once held the prettiest pink walls and all the toys in the world is now gone. The ice cream store down the street, which I believe had the best ice cream in the world is destroyed: I still remember how the vanilla ice cream in a cone with rainbow sprinkles looks. All of which are gone.
Photos from various parts of occupied Palestine during summer 2023. (Courtesy of Lana Mustafa)
The reason I take great importance in spreading the truth and not allowing the Western media to redesign what is considered reality is because of the implications it has on us. 6-year-old Wadea was murdered because of the rhetoric said against Palestinians. He had just celebrated his 6th birthday. My nephews are around that age, and I could not fathom a world where someone hated them enough to attempt to murder them.
If you're anything like me who needs reassurance in all of this pain, let us remember that one of the makings of a Shaheed (Martyr), as stated in a Hadith, is the one who has a building fallen over them. There is another Hadith that says their pain is similar to that of a bite from an insect. I know that the injustice against them in this world will not be carried over in heaven because God will deal with the oppressors and their crimes. I am going to do my best to get enough good deeds to meet them there. I will continue to talk about them and fight for them until my very last breath.
Stories always have a, “and they all lived happily ever after. The end.” This story doesn't have a “the end.” لسا القصة تمشي . Still, the story is walking. Palestine will never die as long as we keep it in our hearts and dua.
I’d like to end by thanking the supporters of Gaza from the West Bank. I know it feels like Israel has separated us into two different worlds, but nonetheless, we feel each other's pain, and I look forward to our unification one day. I’d like to thank the non-Palestinian Arabs for their undaunting support, even if their country’s leaders don’t have the same morals. Then I’d like to thank the non-Arab Muslims who have given such a courageous display of solidarity.
Lastly, I’d like to thank the non-Muslim and non-Arab supporters of Palestine. You have been fed an untrue and illegitimate narrative, and yet you were brave and smart enough to seek the truth. You pushed against the narrative that seems to have the upper hand…for now.
Thank you.
[Speech ends]