The Holy Land deserves more than just peace. It deserves justice.
Listening to people speak about a possible two-state solution, the Barrier, the “other,” I worry that people desiring peace are aiming for personal security rather than justice. By “just peace,” I mean negative peace – the absence of war. Many Israelis and Palestinians are for this negative peace. They desire to live without fear from gunshots. Over time, they have come to recognize that this may well come at a price (giving up part of Jerusalem, ceding territory, etc.). But all too often, I fear, this concession comes from a pragmatic realization rather than a commitment to true peace. A mere ceasefire – just peace – is no peace at all.
And the Holy Land deserves more. How can we claim this region to still be holy if gross injustices to humanity – treatment all of our faiths condemn – is allowed to run rampant? We cannot point fingers; no one can. All of us allow the injustices to occur. Christians act unjustly towards Jews, Muslims, and other Christians (not to mention those of other or no faith). As do all other people. And we, the perpetrators, cannot excuse ourselves. We must actively work to bring justice to this land. Because if it cannot happen here, how can we expect it to happen anywhere else?
So I have found my goal for the summer. Not just peace, but Just Peace.
(Let me add that I’m not expecting to achieve it this summer. But I do seek to find those who are working towards it and learn how I might, someday, manage to make it happen…with a LOT of help.)
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I think you should get it done this summer. Go for the gusto.
ReplyDeleteI am, for all my optimism, vaguely realistic...
ReplyDeleteEric: I actually don’t agree with your offhand dismissal of “just peace” or a “mere ceasefire” as “no peace at all.” I think, for those who live under fire, a “mere ceasefire” is a pretty good thing to start with. And in the context of our conversations on the bus about “just peace” vs. “peace,” I don’t think the choice we were setting up was between a “just peace” and a “mere ceasefire” (status quo, but with no shooting), but rather between an attempt to hold out for the “perfect peace,” in which everyone gets exactly what they think they deserve, without giving up anything, even at the great that this will never be achieved, and peace created through compromise, in which each party gives up things that under perfect justice they would not have to give up (all of Jerusalem, the right of return, territory that they feel would give them added security against attack, etc.), and get peace and security (each with a state, with secure borders, a chance to select their own government that represents them, freedom from fear of the other) – not necessarily loving their neighbors across the borders, but perhaps the first steps toward healing the wounds of the last century and eventually a real, warm peace. (I actually don’t think this will be long coming, once the two states are established…)
ReplyDeleteBecca: I would say that a basic ceasefire is the first step towards a more just peace. Holding out for a “perfect peace” will, indeed, allow for gross injustices (on both sides) to continue during the process. I think the reason the Peace and Justice Specialization at Michigan State seems to value justice over peace is because peace is seen as a stepping stone to justice. It is a necessary precondition. Justice cannot exist in the presence of violence. But basic physical peace can exist without justice. Many US citizens do not live in fear of a sudden end to their life or that a neighbor will suddenly try to seize their home, but live in conditions that will inevitably given them a lesser quality of life than others. Women in the 19th century did not fear gunshots whenever they left their homes, but (most would agree) did not have lives equal to those of men. Gays and lesbians in the US don’t face death daily (in most places), but live in conditions of injustice.
To a starving woman, a loaf of bread looks beautiful. If she can see getting that loaf, she’ll work to get it. But a banquet is preferable.
By all means, get to peace. Have ceasefire. Eat the loaf of bread. But don’t stop there. I believe there’s a big enough banquet for us all to sit at.