Reflections on an ICAHD Tour

While I have been here, I have had the opportunity to go on 2 ICAHD tours. ICAHD stands for the Israeli Committee against Housing Demolitions. It is an organization that focuses on nonviolent resistance, and the tour is informational and talks about the impact of the Wall and of housing demolitions on both Palestinians and Israelis. It goes over some of the history of Israel/Palestine since 1948, so I wanted to write about a little of what they talked about.
The annexation of East Jerusalem starting in 1967 affected 28 Palestinian villages. Israel took over mostly agricultural villages. In 1967, 1/3 of the population in Jerusalem was Arab.At that time, the official goal of Israel was to maintain a "demographic balance" meaning that Israel's intention was to ensure that the Arab population didn't grow. Today there are 2 categories of Arabs living in Jerusalem: those with Israeli residency and those with West Bank status. Arabs who have Israeli residency receive the same services and freedom of movement as Israelis but have no Israeli passport and cannot vote. Although Arabs still comprise 1/3 of the population in Jerusalem, only 8-12% of tax money is spent on them. Additionally, although there are 490 parks in Jerusalem, only 8 (2%) are in East Jerusalem, where most of the Arabs reside.
Ok, now moving on to housing demolitions...Every year, between 100 and 150 Palestinian housing are demolished each year. It is interesting to note that there are 15,000 demolition orders each year. The system of demolitions is random; thus the Palestinians live in constant fear of their houses being destroyed. As the Israeli who led us on the tour said, Israel's official policy is fear and that is how they try to get people to do as they want. 20,000 homes have been demolished in the past years. Our guide also told us that housing demolitions are proof that occupation is not about security, it is about land.
While I don't necessarily want to get into the politics of this right now, I want to show the human side of these housing demolitions. Oftentimes, the family of the house about to be demolished has only an hour's notice. Therefore, many of their personal and sentimental belonging must be left behind. I can't even begin to think of what I would prioritize if I only had an hour to gather things I have been collecting and saving for a lifetime. To add injury to insult, families must pay for their own housing demolitions. I have heard a story of a man who demolished his own house upon hearing the news of his demolition order simply because it would be less expensive for him to do it.
When our guide first started talking, he asked the question: Why be involved? There are many answers to these questions, and they apply to everyone in the world, and particularly America. We, as taxpayers, are helping to fund the Occupation and all that goes with it. I do not want to be a part of this, so I feel like it is my civic duty to tell the story of the Israel/Palestine conflict. The wall is not only hurting Palestinians; it is also hurting Israelis. Both sides fear for their children and for their futures, and this is not how it has to be. I don't know what the answer is, so for now I am just trying to stay informed and to be present here.
If you would like more information about ICAHD and their work, visit:http://www.icahd.org/eng/