Wilderness week, Sudan, RIP Tim King – Mazin Qumsiyeh
It was an amazing experience to participate as a speaker and as an audience
member in the International Wilderness week organized by the European
Wilderness Society (wilderness-society.org). My talk was about how
indigenous people of Palestine fight the domineering system of colonialism
and protect our nature and our planet. You can see my presentation here
https://www.facebook.com/Europ
This week we also had deep discussions with Four Arrows (aka Don Jacobs)
about hope and optimism and the struggles of indigenous people around the
world. Here is an article of his worth reading and re-reading titled “The
Media Have Missed a Crucial Message of the UN’s Biodiversity Report: If we
want to halt the extinction crisis, we need to embrace Indigenous
worldviews”
https://www.thenation.com/arti
We are all tempted occasionally to fear the domineering position of some
countries (like the US and Israel who just forced the Sudan government to
buckle like they did the UAE and Bahrain). But if we take a wider view of
life, empires last but a blink of an eye in historical terms. The US Empire
will last much shorter than most other empires in history (Dutch, Swedish,
Spanish, Portuguese, Persian, Ottoman etc). Israel will be even shorter and
will not make it to 100 years. COVID-19 pandemic only highlighted the
failure of their domineering world view. This weekend, the Institute of
Palestine Studies hosts a conference where we discuss the future of
Palestine (challenges and obstacles to freedom). But what we also need are
conferences that discuss liberating the earth from colonial (and
consumerist) Empire. We need a global revolution and it is happening (look
at Bolivia as an example). We do see a rise in awareness. This is literally
existential (see nuclear war, climate change, the next pandemic etc). So
let us focus on what we the indigenous people who have always lived in
harmony with earth can and should be engaged in. I look to the six olive
trees in my own small yard and the over 30 in the botanic garden of the
Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability (see
http://palestinenature.org). The olives are ready to be picked next week
(rain expected Sunday). I only regret that I injured my back and for the
first time in many many years, I will not be able to do things like
climbing the trees or bending down to pick the olives (though I will still
pick olives standing up). This is what hope is about. We are rooted in this
earth like the trees. The colonialists will never win. Peace and justice
are not destinations but are our chosen path. The tens of thousands of
people receiving this email and those that hear us directly through
webinars give ample proof of our joint humanity. Join us from where you are
or come pick olives with us! Our motto is respect (for ourselves, for
others, and for nature). Together we can save our only home from the
domineering world system. As four Arrows says “Okiciya makiyokipi na
iyuteya, cuke wayokapi, mitakuye oyasin. (Help each other acclimate and
adjust, because the truth is, we are all related.)”
See also Allyship: resources to support indigenous people
https://ethnobiology.org/decol
This post is in honor of our friend and friend of Palestine and of all
humanity Tim King who died this month in a motorcycle accident Rest in
peace my friend. Obituary here
http://salem-news.com/articles
Here is one of the many articles published in Salem News thanks to Tim
http://www.salem-news.com/arti
Stay Human and keep Palestine alive
Mazin Qumsiyeh
A bedouin in cyberspace, a villager at home
Professor, Founder, and (volunteer) Director
Palestine Museum of Natural History
Palestine Institute of Biodiversity and Sustainability
Bethlehem University
Occupied Palestine
http://qumsiyeh.org
http://palestinenature.org
————– next part ————–
An HTML attachment was scrubbed…
URL: <http://lists.qumsiyeh.org/pip
______________________________
HumanRights newsletter
http://lists.qumsiyeh.org/list
This message was sent to sofsafi@gmail.com. To unsubscribe, visit:
http://lists.qumsiyeh.org/opti
