The Pro-Palestine Speech Harvard Didn't Want You To See

00:08:58
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8Mw2mELF4g

Resumen

TLDRIn a poignant speech, the speaker reflects on the importance of community, moral accountability, and the ongoing struggles faced by marginalized groups, particularly in Palestine. Drawing from personal experiences and historical narratives, the speaker emphasizes the role of educators and students in advocating for justice. The story of Imam Hussein serves as a powerful metaphor for standing against tyranny. The speaker shares experiences with students in Gaza, highlighting their resilience and the urgent need for support. The speech culminates in a call to action, urging the audience to confront injustices and to recognize the interconnectedness of their struggles for liberation.

Para llevar

  • 🤝 Community support is vital in times of moral chaos.
  • 📜 Imam Hussein's legacy teaches us to resist tyranny.
  • 💧 'Giving water' symbolizes compassion and solidarity.
  • 📚 Education plays a crucial role in advocating for justice.
  • 🌍 The struggles for liberation are interconnected.
  • 🕊️ Poetry serves as a means of healing and expression.
  • 💔 The situation in Gaza highlights urgent humanitarian needs.
  • 🌈 Dreams of freedom inspire hope amidst despair.
  • ✊ We must confront injustices and take action.
  • 🌟 Resilience of youth is a beacon of hope for the future.

Cronología

  • 00:00:00 - 00:08:58

    The speaker reflects on the importance of community and support during times of moral chaos, drawing inspiration from their grandmother and the historical events of Karbala, where Imam Hussein stood against tyranny. They emphasize the significance of compassion, even towards enemies, and highlight the ongoing struggles faced by people in places like Gaza, where students are enduring extreme hardships. The speaker shares personal stories of resilience and solidarity, urging the audience to recognize their complicity in global injustices and to rise courageously to support those in need, particularly the people of Palestine. They conclude with a poignant dream of freedom expressed by a Palestinian student, encapsulating the longing for peace and normalcy amidst chaos.

Mapa mental

Vídeo de preguntas y respuestas

  • What is the significance of Imam Hussein's story?

    Imam Hussein's story symbolizes the refusal to submit to tyranny and the importance of standing for justice, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

  • How does the speaker connect personal experiences to broader social issues?

    The speaker shares personal anecdotes about their grandmother and students to illustrate the importance of community support and moral responsibility in addressing injustices.

  • What role do students play in the speaker's narrative?

    Students are portrayed as vital sources of hope and resilience, actively engaging in the fight for justice and freedom.

  • What does the speaker mean by 'giving water' to others?

    'Giving water' symbolizes providing support, compassion, and solidarity to those in need, especially in times of crisis.

  • How does the speaker address the situation in Gaza?

    The speaker highlights the dire conditions in Gaza, emphasizing the lack of aid and the resilience of its people amidst ongoing violence.

  • What is the call to action for the audience?

    The audience is urged to rise to the call for justice and to confront the realities of oppression, particularly regarding Palestine.

  • What themes are prevalent in the speech?

    Themes of moral accountability, community support, resilience, justice, and the impact of historical narratives on contemporary struggles are prevalent.

  • How does the speaker use poetry in their message?

    Poetry is used as a means of expression and healing, allowing students to articulate their dreams and experiences amidst conflict.

  • What is the significance of the phrase 'I had a dream'?

    The phrase encapsulates the longing for freedom, normalcy, and a life free from the horrors of war and oppression.

  • What does the speaker mean by 'our liberations are intertwined'?

    This phrase suggests that the struggles for justice and freedom are interconnected, and that solidarity is essential for collective liberation.

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Subtítulos
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Desplazamiento automático:
  • 00:00:00
    [Applause]
  • 00:00:10
    Miss Madman Rahim in the name of God,
  • 00:00:13
    the most beneficent, the most merciful.
  • 00:00:21
    Who are the people who accompany you
  • 00:00:24
    when you find yourself in the
  • 00:00:25
    wilderness?
  • 00:00:27
    Who are the people who hold you
  • 00:00:29
    accountable when you have wronged
  • 00:00:31
    someone?
  • 00:00:32
    Who are the people who remind you of
  • 00:00:34
    your worth and give you the courage to
  • 00:00:37
    try again? And who are the people who
  • 00:00:40
    sit with you as we witness the moral
  • 00:00:43
    injuries of our time? From Somerville
  • 00:00:47
    and Cambridge to Palestine, Congo,
  • 00:00:49
    Kashmir, Arakan, Armenia, Sudan, and
  • 00:00:53
    beyond. For me, it is my students. For
  • 00:00:57
    me, it is my grandmother.
  • 00:01:00
    When I was a child, during the holy
  • 00:01:02
    month of Muharam, my grandmother would
  • 00:01:04
    lead me by the hand to gatherings that
  • 00:01:06
    would become a gift for me in moments of
  • 00:01:09
    moral chaos, teaching me what it means
  • 00:01:11
    to grieve extreme loss and how to stand
  • 00:01:14
    with those who long for justice. Even if
  • 00:01:16
    you find yourself standing alone on the
  • 00:01:19
    sand dunes of a final destination called
  • 00:01:21
    Karbala.
  • 00:01:24
    On the 10th of October 680 CE in that
  • 00:01:28
    place called Karbala, there was a family
  • 00:01:31
    that refused to be ruled by a tyrant.
  • 00:01:35
    Imam Hussein, grandson of Prophet
  • 00:01:37
    Muhammad and his family did not submit
  • 00:01:40
    to a political power because this
  • 00:01:42
    person's conduct was unjust and
  • 00:01:44
    unethical.
  • 00:01:48
    For this, 72 members of the prophet
  • 00:01:51
    Muhammad's family were martyed in battle
  • 00:01:54
    by an army of thousands.
  • 00:01:57
    And yet, even in facing these odds, Imam
  • 00:02:00
    Hussein gave water to his enemies.
  • 00:02:04
    Moved by this act of humanity, Hur the
  • 00:02:08
    commander of the army on the opposing
  • 00:02:10
    side sought out Imam Hussein. That
  • 00:02:12
    night, Imm Hussein rose to greet him,
  • 00:02:15
    saying, "I had been waiting for you to
  • 00:02:18
    arrive."
  • 00:02:21
    And whose name means freedom,
  • 00:02:24
    switch sides.
  • 00:02:26
    A full accounting of the battle of
  • 00:02:28
    Garbala is this. 72 lives lost,
  • 00:02:33
    but one soul gained.
  • 00:02:36
    Who are the people we are giving water
  • 00:02:39
    to?
  • 00:02:41
    Who are the people we are withholding
  • 00:02:43
    water from?
  • 00:02:45
    Last year I had the privilege and honor
  • 00:02:48
    of offering a class called poetry of the
  • 00:02:51
    camps to students in besieged Gaza.
  • 00:02:54
    We came together to write poetry as
  • 00:02:56
    fires raged across the north of Gaza
  • 00:02:59
    ignited by an onslaught of Israeli air
  • 00:03:01
    strikes in the wilderness of their
  • 00:03:04
    genocide.
  • 00:03:05
    Working with these students was the only
  • 00:03:07
    thing that got me out of bed because it
  • 00:03:09
    was one small way I could grieve their
  • 00:03:12
    extreme loss and stand with each of them
  • 00:03:14
    as we continue to fight for their
  • 00:03:16
    freedom and justice.
  • 00:03:19
    One of them, Hind, is a medical student
  • 00:03:22
    at Alazar University in Kaza. Like us,
  • 00:03:26
    Hind loves learning.
  • 00:03:28
    I was raised to love books, she wrote. I
  • 00:03:31
    never thought I would have to feed them
  • 00:03:33
    to a fire so I could have a meager meal.
  • 00:03:36
    Genocide has pushed us to do things we
  • 00:03:38
    never imagined in our darkest
  • 00:03:40
    nightmares.
  • 00:03:41
    Israel has bombed every university in
  • 00:03:44
    Gaza.
  • 00:03:47
    This week, I witnessed a six-year-old
  • 00:03:49
    Palestinian girl named Ward, a flower
  • 00:03:52
    amongst the flames, run to save herself
  • 00:03:55
    after Israel bombed every family member
  • 00:03:57
    she knew at a school serving as a
  • 00:03:59
    shelter.
  • 00:04:02
    Earlier this month, as Pakistan faced
  • 00:04:04
    air strikes from Israeli made drones, it
  • 00:04:07
    was Isra from Gaza who checked in with
  • 00:04:10
    me about my family safety. When I
  • 00:04:13
    thanked her, she said, "Living through
  • 00:04:15
    hardships and suffering does not mean we
  • 00:04:17
    can underestimate other people's
  • 00:04:19
    suffering. I wish you safety."
  • 00:04:22
    There are no safe zones left in after
  • 00:04:24
    600 days and 77 years of genocide.
  • 00:04:29
    I center these students with urgent
  • 00:04:32
    desperation because time is running out.
  • 00:04:37
    No meaningful aid has entered Gaza since
  • 00:04:39
    March 2nd and this is on our account.
  • 00:04:43
    I center Palestine today not just
  • 00:04:45
    because of its scale of atrocity but
  • 00:04:47
    because of our complicity in it.
  • 00:04:54
    [Music]
  • 00:05:03
    Class of 2025,
  • 00:05:05
    Palestine is waiting for us to arrive.
  • 00:05:08
    And you must be courageous enough to
  • 00:05:11
    rise to the call because Palestine will
  • 00:05:13
    keep showing up in our living rooms
  • 00:05:15
    until we are ready to meet its gaze.
  • 00:05:19
    Here I must acknowledge
  • 00:05:22
    that together in the wilderness we have
  • 00:05:24
    witnessed the risks that have come with
  • 00:05:27
    speaking up for this very genocide to be
  • 00:05:29
    farreaching.
  • 00:05:32
    Yet, no matter how charged with
  • 00:05:34
    punishments the scroll, again and again
  • 00:05:37
    we witness to the enormous hearts,
  • 00:05:40
    unwavering courage and profound wisdom
  • 00:05:44
    of students like Romea Ostk, Memud
  • 00:05:47
    Khalil, Mosen Mehawi and countless
  • 00:05:50
    others who are in this very audience
  • 00:05:52
    with us today such as LM Tati Tamalo
  • 00:05:55
    [Applause]
  • 00:06:02
    [Music]
  • 00:06:03
    [Applause]
  • 00:06:12
    our friends and classmate who continues
  • 00:06:14
    to show up not just for Palestine but
  • 00:06:17
    for each of us by extending to us the
  • 00:06:19
    water we need in our most vulnerable
  • 00:06:22
    moments.
  • 00:06:23
    Together, we must refuse to be ruled by
  • 00:06:26
    the tyrants of our time because our
  • 00:06:29
    liberations are intertwined.
  • 00:06:33
    We gather now to take our second census.
  • 00:06:37
    The three of us stand before you. Not
  • 00:06:39
    because it was easy to do this together,
  • 00:06:41
    trust me,
  • 00:06:44
    [Laughter]
  • 00:06:47
    but because it was absolutely vital in a
  • 00:06:51
    world that has given us chasms so wide
  • 00:06:56
    no bridge seems to want to meet us along
  • 00:06:58
    the path. We chose to do this anyway and
  • 00:07:02
    carve our own path by not lying to us to
  • 00:07:05
    each other on the journey.
  • 00:07:09
    These moments when we dream together in
  • 00:07:12
    the wilderness are when we absolutely
  • 00:07:14
    need each other. An honest reckoning is
  • 00:07:18
    what can prepare us for those dreams of
  • 00:07:20
    humanity that will endure.
  • 00:07:23
    My final poetry session with students in
  • 00:07:26
    Gaza was on freedom.
  • 00:07:29
    I asked them, "What would the first day
  • 00:07:32
    of freedom look like?
  • 00:07:35
    How would it feel on a sensory level?
  • 00:07:38
    What colors would the day bear? Who
  • 00:07:40
    would they embrace? What sense would
  • 00:07:42
    come alive on this day of liberation?
  • 00:07:45
    What tastes would be fulfilled?"
  • 00:07:48
    I leave us with a response from my
  • 00:07:50
    student and Palestinian writer, Doha
  • 00:07:53
    Hassan,
  • 00:07:55
    her dream of freedom.
  • 00:07:59
    I had a dream. I went back home. Slept
  • 00:08:03
    on my bed. Felt warmth again. I had a
  • 00:08:07
    dream. I went to college. Nagged all
  • 00:08:10
    day. How hectic it was. I had a dream. I
  • 00:08:15
    wanted to live. I had a dream. I had my
  • 00:08:18
    favorite meal. I had a dream. My ears
  • 00:08:22
    forgot the war sounds. shouting,
  • 00:08:25
    bombardment, mother's sobs and losses.
  • 00:08:29
    I had a dream. My eyes forgot the blood,
  • 00:08:32
    the loss, the patience, obligatory
  • 00:08:35
    patience. My nose forgot the smoke
  • 00:08:38
    smell, the deaths, the corpse rotten. My
  • 00:08:42
    hands stopped shivering. My body skipped
  • 00:08:45
    what I had lived. I had a dream. Not
  • 00:08:48
    panicking, not imagining death
  • 00:08:51
    everywhere.
  • 00:08:53
    I had a dream.
  • 00:08:57
    [Music]
Etiquetas
  • Imam Hussein
  • Palestine
  • justice
  • community
  • resilience
  • moral accountability
  • education
  • poetry
  • freedom
  • solidarity