Ceasefire For All

We don't solve the problem of one injustice by creating another injustice. As everyone should know by now, an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind.

Hamas's attacks on Oct. 7 were devastating, brutally killing 1,139 people in Southern Israel. According to Israeli officials, 132 of 240 people seized by Hamas on October 7 are still being held hostage in Gaza. 25 people have died in captivity. I have family in Israel and am deeply concerned about them and their security. But I don’t support Israel's massive, indiscriminate, and disproportionate military response.

The death toll in Gaza is now over 23,200 people, making this the deadliest conflict for Palestinians since the creation of Israel in 1948. 70% of those killed in Gaza have been women and children, not combatants.

The overwhelming majority of Gaza's population, 1.7 million Palestinians, are registered in shelters in the south, including several hundred thousand people who are living on the streets because there's no space for them in shelters. These people--many of them children--are suffering from a dire lack of food, safe water, heat, basic hygiene, sanitation, hospitals, and access to basic medications.

No progress can be made without acknowledging the humanity of both Palestinians and Israelis. A just and lasting peace is possible but we have to do our part to build it--whether by donating to humanitarian efforts in Gaza, pushing for the release of the remaining hostages, talking to our friends & families about the atrocities that American bombs and funds are fueling, or writing to our lawmakers to call for a ceasefire for all.

Image description: Black-and-white photograph of "War Is Over!" billboard by Yoko Ono and John Lennon. 1969. Text reads: "WAR IS OVER! IF YOU WANT IT Happy Christmas from John & Yoko." Image credit: Getty Images.