The Social Media War
The rocket fire on our phones
The internet was a mistake.
Middle East conflict is great for Westerners because it gives them an opportunity to share with all their friends and followers how “in the know” they are. They are “such a great ally” for reposting an infographic made by a white woman in Brooklyn that is just terrorist propaganda edited on Canva to make it look pretty and sharable.
Media literacy in the toilet.
I understand it’s hard to always know if the information being shared can be taken at face value. I’m overwhelmed and overstimulated by all the information being passed around; who said this? Was it corroborated? Wasn’t that disproved? That’s just straight-up propaganda. Even from sources I trust, there are often conflicting versions of what’s going on, making it impossible to know what to do or how to feel. Some people don’t care though, or, assuming best intentions, they just don’t think to check because they assume the media and celebrities are always telling the truth. Ignorance truly is bliss, isn’t it? These people don’t like when you burst their bliss bubble, or so I have learned.
The social media narrative.
The social media war is brutal. Everyone on social media who, let’s be honest, didn’t know the first thing about what goes on in Gaza until last Sunday, wants to emerge from this being able to say they did the right thing. Whenever conflict arises here, there are tons of people sitting in the States who, because they don’t have family and friends in Israel to be worried sick about, have plenty of time to take to social media to share and re-share thoughts and soundbites about what they perceive to be going on. What I’ve learned (and it really did not take much intense studying) is that these people, who aren’t worried about friends in bomb shelters, family who got called up for reserve duty, or God forbid someone they know who was kidnapped by Hamas, care about one thing: when this is all over, they need to look themselves in the mirror and say that they went on record supporting the “right thing.” The “right thing,” according to a self-righteous ill-informed West is to side with the perfect victim: the underdog in the reductive dichotomy of the white oppressors and the brown oppressees.
The right side of history.
They say they want to be on the right side of history. Like everything else they share online, do these people reflect on the meaning and implication of their words, or do they just like how it sounds? I’m going to indulge myself and pull the I-have-a-history-degree card (and indulge my parents and all of you who pay New York State taxes—thank you!). Nothing about history, especially in times of conflict, reflects a black-and-white right side with heroes and wrong side with villains. Sure, World War II can be reduced to Nazis and the Axis powers vs. the heroic Allied powers who liberated the camps and saved the Jews, hooray. The US liberated Auschwitz on January 27 and now, every year the world marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day on the anniversary so the Allied powers can remind themselves how great they are… Meanwhile, in the 1930s, when Jewish businesses were being targeted and vandalized (not unlike now with the anti-Israel movement in the Diaspora), and Hitler was spreading antisemitic propaganda, and Germany said to the world we will pay you to take these Jews off our hands, not one of these heroic Allied powers agreed. This is the exact kind of “right side of history” these social media activists are on. With their half-assed support on social media for the Palestinians currently in crisis, and silence about tens of thousands in the streets worldwide chanting, “Gas the Jews” and “There is only one solution,” (hmm so much for this being about Israel, not Jews) these people on the right side of history are turning away those being targeted.
People tell on themselves.
I’ve had too many interactions with people who admit in a roundabout way that they have no idea what they’re talking about. I’ve come across people who find out that they shared misinformation and ignore further explanation or a chance to do better. They confirm the suspicion that this was just for the sake of doing the “right thing” all along. Sometimes people get defensive and lash out when you offer a deeper explanation, some stay silent because it’s easier and they have that luxury. The worst is Jews who distance themselves from all things Jewish, until it’s time to condemn Israel in order to maintain standing in their left-wing echo chambers. “Well I’m Jewish and I don’t support Israel.” Yeah, maybe that has something to do with the fact that you distance yourself from all things Jewish because it’s not cool. It really is sad to me that there are Jews who never learned about Israel and don’t have a love for our history and this land, but it’s sadder that they emerge from the woodwork to play the Jew card only to save themselves and damn the rest of their people. All these people don’t even realize that they add fuel to the fire. They are cowards.
In the end.
When all is said and done, what these self-righteous individuals on social media will be left with is a sense of pride and morality for sharing something about how evil Israel is to the poor Palestinians, completely innocent and absolved of any responsibility in this war or the conflict at large. Meanwhile, the Jewish community is mourning the loss of loved ones, battling the near-500% increase of antisemitism around the world, and trying to rebuild our communities. These people who felt so good about standing with Palestinians will go back to their privileged Western lives, not giving another thought to how Hamas keeps these people poor, weak, and disenfranchised, and has them killed if they try to change these circumstances for themselves. Jews and Palestinians around the world will carry this trauma and heartbreak forever, and these people will forgot it ever happened.
Signing off.
As of now, I’m off social media. I couldn’t take it. And frankly, I’m just tired of waiting for everyone who doesn’t care to admit it. For a while, I told myself the least I could do for my people was fight the social media war, but now maintaining my mental health and morale is more important and more helpful than fighting with idiots who don’t want to listen. If you are able, please speak up online and educate those around you. Maybe one of us will come across someone who actually wants to learn. Also, I know this post wasn’t really related to what I intended for this blog and it was perhaps a little spicier than normal. But hey, it’s my blog and I make the rules. Plus, I’m living through a war so you gotta cut me some slack.
