Doing Something About It

There have been a number of protests here in Larache in a show of solidarity with the Palestinians. They have been permitted and well received by the authorities. Which is unlike the Spring of 08 when an unofficial protest by students for Palestine was broken up violently by the police. It was here that I saw middle school students being slapped violently, hit with batons, and thrown into police vehicles. A hard sight to see and a constant reminder of which side the Moroccan government is on when it comes to the Palestinian question.

Now, this freedom is not necesarily anything new and in fact Islam itself calls for a responsible, conscious citizen who doesn't hesitate to denounce bad governance and the suffering of its people. Yet, there is so much pent up anger and aggresion in this part of the world due to an increasing poverty, less and less social mobility, and a continuously corrupt and irresponsible government that with the help of Europe and the US keeps a iron tight grip on its people and their freedom. This is all done in the name of world economics, the fight against terorism, or whatever the evil of the current moment might be. So, it was beautiful to see this outpouring of human emotion and spirit behind last night's march.

It is the first one that I have seen since I came back from America. I was impressed by the sheer quantity of people that had come out for the march. People here are generally disinterested in any civic activity and they would prefer to sit on the sideline and ridicule those that do stand up for something than actually join in and participate. But Palestine is different. And it showed last night...there must have been at least 1000 people there tonight, and it was a tremendous show of support by the Larachi people for the Palestinians. You may feel the intensity in the air and feel as though there is something violent or dangerous going on but the strong emotion simply manifests the pain and the suffering that the Moroccan's are dealing with, for they are so close to feel the pain of the Palestinians but too far away to do anything about it. And its frustrating for them. At least here they have a peaceful and positive way of showing their feelings. Here's the video.

The Conflict In Gaza Touches Morocco Too!

As one might expect, the town here is up in arms over the massacre in Gaza. People feel that they are being targeted specfically because they are Muslims and it seems as if there whole culture, their religion, and their way of life are all under attack from Israel and its powerful ally, the US of A. People are glued to their TV sets and their computers with a continual 24 hour bombardment of horrifying, graphic photographs of children maimed, schools destroyed, and wailing mothers. What is it in ourselves that enjoys watching violence? What is it that attracts us to disaster? Is it a way to make our lives seem a little bit less chaotic? Are we just bored and looking for something to amuse us? Students of non-violence know that if a massacre is averted and people saved it will not receive nearly as much attention as a grisly murder of a family of five, although it is just as important to tell both stories, I am convinced that there is something more attractive about Negative News than Positive News...and I'm not sure as to why that is. But I think it speaks deeply to the consciousness and state of mind of our society.

Here too there is something that attracts the viewing public to watch other people suffer and something awful that doesn't let you get up from your seat. Compounded by the feelings of impotence and powerlessness that the Moroccans feel, helpless to do anything to help the Palestinians. Their only recourse is anger and disgust for Israel, America, and their own governments. Yes, one's imagination and thinking positive can be powerful things, perhaps life changing but a lot of people here are trained to think in a negative mindest. And it has been programmed in by generations and generations of repression by the government, the elite, and the Western governments that created and supported them. Honestly, its rare that I find someone here in this small city that has a positive outlook on his situation in life or believes that he or she can make things better. In America we are constantly reminded of the power of change, of dreaming, of the possibility to make things better but here the reality is more cold and social mobility is practically impossible. So the message doesn't really get through. It has perhaps been one of the hardest tasks of my job here, to get the kids I work with to believe that they can change their lives, their neighborhoods, and their city for the better. Its hard to get someone to believe when the present seems all too dark for a bright future. Any ideas how you help someone to believe, help someone to dream, help someone to think positive?