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Open Letter to J.K. Rowling From a Palestinian Fan

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Originally published on Mia Oudeh Facebook Page

Dear J. K. Rowling,

I am an avid fan of yours, and have continuously read your Harry Potter books non-stop since the age of 11. My whole house is splattered with memorabilia, and I have just returned from visiting Harry Potter World which was one of the most amazing trips of my life. I’m 100% obsessed with your books, and frequently dream about them – in particular, the Battle of Hogwarts, where my sub-conscious always brings in my own personal battle, but a battle in which I think everyone should be taking part.

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I am writing to you in response to your public support for Israeli-Palestinian dialogue and opposition to the BDS movement in the Guardian’s “Culture for Coexistence” letter. As a Palestinian, I have to say that I was completely disappointed when I read about this, because your books have been the very source of all the hope I have for peace and justice in my homeland someday. You see, my Battle of Hogwarts dreams have always had the death eaters as Zionists, and Harry and his peers as Palestinians. Knowing that the idea for your epic novels was from World War II and the Nazis, I naturally drew parallels between the books and Zionist Israel and Palestine. I am therefore entirely confused and heart broken at your support for this letter, because to me, as a Palestinian Potterhead, it does not quite make sense.

The letter in question states: “Cultural boycotts singling out Israel are divisive and discriminatory and will not further peace … Open dialogue and interaction promote greater understanding and mutual acceptance … Cultural engagement builds bridges, nurtures freedom and positive movement for change. We wholly endorse encouraging such a powerful tool for change rather than boycotting its use.”

I feel that this letter has not contextualised the grim reality of Israel/Palestine, and is paradoxical in its nature. In this response to your support of the letter, I will be drawing parallels between the Harry Potter world and the Palestinian world in order to demonstrate my confusion.

Firstly, “boycotts singling out Israel are divisive and discriminatory,” is a ridiculous sentence in itself. I’m not sure whether you know the history of Israel, but it did not exist before 1948. It is a settler-colonial state which operates on the apartheid of an indigenous people and has broken international law and UN resolutions every single day since its existence. The practices Israel enforces in its culture and every day functioning are in themselves divisive and discriminatory. No cultural engagement between Palestinians and Israelis will ever build bridges, because rather than the “two sides are to blame” argument the letter you signed endorses, there are no two sides.

When the death eaters take over the Ministry of Magic and begin to run the magical world, would you have placed them in an equal side to the Potter trio? I definitely would not; the death eaters ran a ministry of oppression – from the “Magic is Might” statue of the naked muggles being used to support the robed wizard, to the brutal treatment of muggle born students at Hogwarts. Additionally, the death eaters had the advantage of fighting together using the Unforgivable Curses, having an army of brutal magical creatures including giants and dementors, having magical spells to track the Potter trio’s movements and having full control of the magical world through their position of power.

J k rowling

In contrast, Harry was working in isolation with the support of his two friends. His “side” were terrorised families who could not step one foot out of line in fear of being tortured and/or killed, or who were in hiding and on the run. It was a completely uneven distribution of power and most definitely not two sides. It was a case of the oppressor and the oppressed.

Now let’s consider this in the Israel/Palestine context. How can we, as Palestinians, sit and conduct peaceful dialogue with Israelis, as equal sides, both to blame for a “conflict”, when there is also an uneven distribution of power?

Israel has the fourth largest army in the world and receives $10.2 million in military aid daily from the U.S.. Palestine has no army and receives no money for military aid. When you look at news articles and pictures of the so-called “conflict”, you can see the Israeli Defence Forces kitted out in uniform, armed with guns and helmets and tanks and illegal chemical weapons and f16s and drones. In contrast, you see Palestinians with rocks and handmade weapons, if they are lucky enough. You can see the damage made with something like drones or white phosphorous in contrast to the damage of “Hamas rockets” (the media’s favourite phrase). This very example shows the uneven distribution of power, and sets the base for why it is argued that Israel and Palestine are not two sides, but the oppressor and the oppressed.

In the magical world, the muggles and muggle borns were completely exploited and ridiculed by the death eaters. Muggle borns were named the derogatory name “Mudblood” and were accused of “stealing magic” if they could not provide proof of magical relatives. Muggle-born students were singled out in Hogwarts when the death eaters started teaching there, and some muggle borns had to go on the run and were often rounded up by Snatchers. The death eaters’ hatred and discriminatory practices against the muggle borns were not a secret; they were plain for everyone to see, much like the treatment of the Palestinians by Israel.

How can we talk about cultural bridges when Israelis live in illegal settlements (under international law) with unlimited supplies of running water and electricity, whilst meters away Palestinian villages have one of the worst droughts in the world? As one of my dear friends so aptly put, will these bridges of peace bridge the Palestinians who are literally fenced into ghetto villages by an 8m concrete wall, checkpoints and watch towers (which eerily look like the watch towers of Nazi concentration camps) to the land they have been cut off from, which Israelis can access at any time? Will our cultural bridge of peace bridge Shuhada street in Hebron, where Palestinians literally have to use a specific walkway separate to Israelis (much like the bus services around the country)? Shall we invite the Israelis, who are off-duty from their military tasks in for a cup of tea before they return to bombing us with one of the world’s most advanced armies? Maybe when they come over they can wear their t-shirts depicting pregnant Palestinian women, saying “1 shot 2 kills” and talk about how distressed they feel as their leaders are celebrating their regime saying “we are the masters”.

Have you ever even looked at the type of Zionist statements made against Palestinians? For example, just two weeks ago 13 year old Ahmad Salih Manasra was shot and a video taken of the scene documented Israeli onlookers shouting, “Die, son of a whore!” and ordering police to “Give him one in the head” whilst he lay bleeding and struggling to breathe on the floor [8]. Perhaps Ahmad would like to have those onlookers as visitors at the hospital he’s now recovering in – they can bring in flowers, see how he’s doing and he can listen to how threatened they felt watching him be attacked.

The suggestion of dialogue is as absurd as an oblivious muggle who has no awareness or willingness to understand of the context between a death eater and muggle born. It’s like Vernon Dursley shaking his head, saying that we’re all being foolish and peace will come if only Dean Thomas, whose father was killed because he refused to serve the death eaters, and Antonin Dolohov sat together and “talked it out”. Of course, that would never happen because Dolohov was outwardly for the expulsion of anyone against Voldemort, and could have been the very person who plotted and killed Dean’s dad. How could Dean ever contemplate sitting with someone who’s colleagues killed his father, who was actively seeking out his peers from school, and who was torturing and maiming people for their identity?

How about, when the death eaters storm and wreck Xenophilius Lovegood’s house looking for Harry in false exchange for Luna, they all pause their “conflict” and talk to each other about how all of this is making them feel. Because, the death eaters’ feelings are just as valid as Xenophilius’. Because there are two sides to every story.

Just like Palestinians when they face daily military incursions, house arrests and house demolitions. I’m sure the families in Sheikh Jarrah (East Jerusalem) would love to talk to the Israelis who made them homeless by illegally kicking them out of their houses so that they can use them as holiday accommodation, and who force them to pay for their water, gas and electricity bills even though they don’t have access to them. Or perhaps my friends in Susiya village, who have had their homes and temporary tent shelters demolished time and time again, would love to invite the illegal Israeli settlers who stole their farm and the Israeli soldiers responsible for their demolitions over for some dinner. Because the illegal holiday making settlers who thieved their homes and farms, and the Israeli soldiers who order house demolitions on tent shelters have feelings just as valid as the families whom they stole their homes from. Two “sides” to every story.

I have a feeling, with all due respect, that you have never spoken to a Palestinian before. Your signature on this letter seems to be made from a judgement purely based on privilege and monetary benefits. I therefore welcome you to come visit me and talk to my family about whether they would like to have some dialogue with Israelis and build a cultural bridge of peace.

Maybe you could ask my father, who lived through three wars before the age of 25; who grew up with drones flying over his head during his early childhood; who lost contact with his parents, siblings and family whilst he was at university because Israel expelled them from their home; and who was banned from returning to his home because he “willingly left” to go study in Egypt and could therefore not return to search for his family. Or you could ask my mother, who has not been allowed to even visit her birth city in over 40 years.

How about talking to all 6 million Palestinian refugees who are dispersed all over the world, waiting with their keys from when they left their homes in 1948 to go back to their still-intact houses; waiting for the promise of their return (granted by the British) to be acted upon at last; waiting for Israel to comply to UN resolution 194 (III) which states “that the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property which, under principles of international law or in equity, should be made good by the Governments or authorities responsible”; waiting for the international community to stop preaching about “two sides” and “dialogue” and to recognise that the state of Israel has been guilty of consistently breaking international law from its creation.

Sure, they would love to talk to every Zionist out there who is actively contributing to their displacement. I for one just love to read about American Jews who have no genetic ties to Israel but want to move there because they just love it there, meanwhile if I try to visit I am strip searched, interrogated and shot at even though my parents were born there. Yeah, let’s have some dialogue – it’ll solve everything!

The letter you signed is a prime example of the “good, unbiased Westerner approach” which actively ignores international law violations, dehumanises the indigenous Palestinians, and lazily sweeps Western responsibility under the carpet. The elephant in the room that we all need to talk about is: none of this would be happening if it weren’t for Britain who gave the land to Israel in the first place, with no consultation from the indigenous population. No, let’s ignore history and statistics and daily reports of atrocities and say, “you both need to calm down, let’s all sit at a table like we’ve been doing for the past 60 years and talk about your feelings and find some shared experiences from perspectives.” How dare anyone, who has not picked up a book or watched a documentary on the subject, who has never even spoken to a Palestinian about their life tell them what to do when they have no idea how it feels to be oppressed; to be cut off from your homeland whilst international settlers take up camp there; how it feels to see pixelated images of your friends’ dead, mutilated bodies appear on your computer screen through a news report whilst people tell you to “stay calm”; how it feels to stay up all night worrying for 8 months straight whilst the love of your life has been subjected to torture methods in solitary confinement and administrative detention without trial or charge?

Can you imagine someone sitting Hermione and Bellatrix down, after Bellatrix has tortured Hermione, to talk things out? Perhaps Neville could join them, and report back to his deranged parents the success of their dialogue. Intergenerational trauma is one of the most prevalent mental illnesses in the Palestinian community, with PTSD being the most common disorder in Palestinian children. Every family living in Palestine has had at least one member of their family arrested under administrative detention and tortured by soldiers for information. Why should a Palestinian who has been subjected to extreme means of psychological and physical torture sit across from an Israeli to hear their perspective? That’s like a cancer patient listening to someone who is completely healthy complaining about a bruise on their leg.

“Ah,” I can hear you say, “But what about the Israelis suffering?”, and in response to that I would say please study the published statistics on those killed in the “conflict” and recognise that you cannot even begin to compare the number of deaths of Israelis to Palestinians. Millions have been massacred and murdered, thousands incarcerated in jails without trial or charge. For you, you hear the words “Israel” and “Palestine” maybe once or twice a year, but I hear them every day when my friends tell me of the news coming from there. Additionally, Israel does not limit its atrocities to Palestinians; in this month alone there have already been reports of a British man, Rabbi and Israeli being attacked by Israeli soldiers.

Like the propaganda created to argue that muggle borns stole magic, propaganda is dispersed everywhere to paint Palestinians as terrorists, and Israelis as victims. Harry was depicted as dangerous and mad, like a terrorist, to the wizarding community – much like the Palestinians you will see flickering on your tv screen. But, as Hermione might suggest, sources mean everything, and I only hope that you have not taken your information from the Zionists’ version of the Daily Prophet, but rather the Palestinians’ version of Potterwatch. Because just like your novels show, the best way to get information is to go straight to the source instead of a mass media production site. Rita Skeeter herself demonstrated the dangers of reporting and spreading biased and exaggerated news articles, and although I’m extremely certain nobody would trap you in a jar as a beetle, I’m sure that one day you will have to backtrack your arguments.

I honestly think you are one of the most creatively intelligent writers we have, and up until now you have inspired me beyond belief. I would hate to think that you knew all of this previously before signing that letter, because by signing it you have automatically signed up to Netanyahu’s inner circle of supporters – the same man who regularly denied that Palestine ever existed and referred to Palestinians as “Arabs” to strip them of their racial identity who has just said that the genocide of the Jews in World War II wasn’t actually from the Nazis but from the Palestinians themselves (yes, he used the ‘P’ word showing that his consistent denial of Palestine was a political tactic).

To the Palestinians, many of whom rely on Harry Potter as a means of inspiration and escapism, you have outed yourself as a sympathiser of today’s present-day Nazis who are conducting ethnic cleansing as we speak. I only hope that now I’ve highlighted my concerns that you might withdraw your signature and realise that a peaceful, practical approach to fighting apartheid is to endorse BDS until Israel complies with international law. It worked with South African apartheid, which I’m sure you never supported, and it will work with Israeli apartheid too.

So many intellectual academics, scholars, musicians, artists, novelists, scientists and performers have spoken out for their support of BDS. It is the only logical way that this madness will stop. We have spoken until our tongues have dried out – dialogue is a method that has gone stale. We need action and that action is BDS until Israel recognises international law, like every country on this planet should.

The letter you signed uses the word “coexistence” in its title – but “coexistence” will never be reached until the lives of every single person is treated with dignity and respect. Somehow, I don’t think sitting down and talking is going to teach the IDF or Israeli settlers to start respecting Palestinian life, because they are so indoctrinated into a culture of brain washed military life. For example, they have been recorded watching the bombing of Gaza as though it were a movie at the cinema. Coexistence will happen once this culture is torn down, and I am so sure that if Harry could defeat Voldemort, Neville could behead Nagini, and Snape could be good, that Palestine will be free and we will all live as one people on this Earth.

I hope that this letter is shared as widely as possible so that you may see it, and that I can hear your reply.

Mia Oudeh

 

 

Sources
[1] http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/22/star-authors-jk-rowling-hilary-mantel-israel-palestinian-boycott-guardian-letter

[2] http://www.ifamericansknew.org/stat/usaid.html

[3] http://anticapitalists.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/asymmetry-rockets.jpg

[4] http://unispal.un.org/pdfs/WHOEMOPT006E.pdf

[5] http://www.nad-plo.org/userfiles/file/arabic-maps/qalqilia.pdf

[6] http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/palestine-hebron-settlements-al-shuhada-street-oppressed-cannot-live-oppressors-1510579

[7] http://news.sky.com/…/israeli-army-t-shirts-mock-gaza-killi…

[8] https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/charlotte-silver/we-are-masters-says-israeli-mayor-3-more-palestinians-are-killed

[9]https://www.ochaopt.org/…/ocha_opt_sheikh_jarrah_factsheet_…

[10] http://palsolidarity.org/2015/05/israeli-state-threatening-immediate-demolition-of-entire-palestinian-village/

[11]

[12]http://www.telegraph.co.uk/…/Britain-must-atone-for-its-sin…

[13] http://www.ijmhs.com/content/3/1/21

[14] http://australiansforpalestine.com/…/06/BP13-AFP-Prisoners.…

[15] http://www.ifamericansknew.org/

[16] http://egyptianstreets.com/…/palestine-will-not-exist-decl…/

[17] http://www.alternet.org/…/painting-palestinians-nazis-netan…

[18] http://www.bdsmovement.net/

[19]http://itisapartheid.org/…/IsraelViolationsInternationalLaw…

[20]http://www.buzzfeed.com/…/israelis-seen-clapping-and-eating…

[21] https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/…/14957-torture-in-israel…

[22] http://www.independent.co.uk/…/david-amos-gun-wielding-gang…

[23] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Agqi6akkc20

[24] http://www.worldbulletin.net/…/idf-shoots-dead-jewish-man-i…

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25 Comments

25 Comments

  1. Michael Bee

    October 26, 2015 at 11:42 PM

    Well meaning but ill informed. I think, Mia, this describes not only J. K. Rowling but so much of the world outside of the middle east. I am trying to educate myself; so, your letter has been particularly helpful. I will share your letter here in the West as Potter is big and it could make a big impact in contextualizing for us in America.

    You are in my thoughts and prayers and i will try to share with my representative and senators.

    -Kind regards and hopes for a brighter future
    Michael

    Reply

  2. Peter

    October 26, 2015 at 11:46 PM

    I am surprised how this letter managed to get posted, as it does more damage to the Palestinian cause than help.

    One is it full of lies, and clearly a lot is invented by someone who is full of hate and little on fact.

    For example, comparing the Zionist with Nazis and the Palestinians with the oppressed is not only historically incorrect, but ironic in the extreme, as the Jews were the victims of Nazis, and the Palestinians supported the Nazi movement.

    Using that comparison shows you do not want peace, but to insult.

    Other untruths, Israel does not have the 4th largest military in the world and no where near it, who you post BS, you devalue any real message you have.

    Also saying your father grew up enduring 3 wars and drones flying above is a fabrication unless your dad is about 15. Drones have not been deployed that long.

    Then you mention ethnic cleansing, they only side talking about ethnic cleansing is Hamas, which as we all know is Palestinian, and the Arab states have done nothing but talk about ethnic cleaning since 1948.

    These are just a few points of many.

    You are trying to be the victim. However the cause of most of the Palestinian suffering has been Palestinians and their Arab brothers using them as pawns. Lies, racism and fabrications do nothing to help Palestinians.

    The Jews are far from blameless in this affair, however the way Palestinians have approached every single aspect of their own self determination has been disastrous. If one wanted to write a textbook on how not to have your own nation, one would have to just look at what the Palestinians have done for the last 60 years. The Jews have got a lot wrong, the Palestinian leadership has gotten EVERYTHING wrong.

    Palestinians are welfare dependent, kept permanently in misery by their own leadership, and that of their neighboring Arab states, and missed the boat every single time they have had a chance to become a nation.

    Yes there was no State of Israel before 1948, but there was no state of Palestine either, the area has be conquered time and time again. It has been populated time and time again.

    Palestinians will never have a nation until they grow up, and stop being pawns. They need to get off the welfare, and work with what they have, and who their neighbours are. They need to have a leadership that actually want to do the right thing for Palestinians, not the petty thieves, liars, murderers and thugs they throw up continually as their leaders.

    If they did that in 1948, Palestine would exist, be 3 times the current size, and most probably the richest middle eastern state by a long way. The biggest asset Palestinians have, is having a large population of Jews next door. Palestinians and their Arab neighbours, have done everything to exterminate the only people, who would willing want to live in that part of the world besides the local population.

    Palestinians, I am positive, want to lead good, long healthy and productive lives in peace. They need to stop hating, stop lying and playing the victim, it is pathetic. they need to start thinking, acting in a positive manner and take advantage of the greatest natural resource in that part of the world by far, the Jews.

    I am not a Jew, I do not hate Arabs, and when I meet Arab people outside of the Middle east they are fantastic people. However the childish nonsense that Arabs go on with, for the last 80 years, needs to stop, they need to grow up.

    Reply

    • Imran

      October 27, 2015 at 3:14 AM

      Your comments seem like you watch Fox News half the time and use your brain the other half.

      Israel is an apartheid state. Anyone denying that has lost their head. It is a colonial estate with people travelling from Europe taking over Palestinian lands. Perhaps you should look at the map of ever expanding Israel and diminishing Palestinian land for yourself.

      Yes Palestinians want to lead peaceful lives but not under subjugation. Yes their leadership has been horrendous but that is not to absolve Israel for its crime of occupation.

      You seem like someone whose heart maybe in the right place but ill informed.

      Reply

      • Truth

        November 2, 2015 at 2:49 AM

        Imran
        Your comments seem like you watch too much Al Jazera.
        Israel an apartheid state? Really? Why might that be? Possibly due to Hamas threatening to obliterate Israel and suicide bombers supported by Muslim extremists who will never agree to peace.
        A colonial estate. What garbage! Israel has been the spiritual homeland for Jews for thousands years. Those people travelling from Europe you mention were Jews returning to this spiritual homeland. And what’s more the land they acquired in the 19th century and early 20th century was legally purchased mostly from absentee Ottoman land lords based in Damascus. Has it not occurred to you the reason Israel has expanded since then is as a result of winning the three wars since 1948. The three wars that the Arab nations started leading to the Palestinian refugee problem. I suspect Israel continues its occupation of the West bank and Gazza as a buffer to its borders against future aggression from Arab countries.
        And you think modern Israel is a European construct. Do you not know or do you simply ignore that Sephardi Arab Jews make up a huge proportion of the Israeli population. The same Arab Jews that faced persecution from the original Arab / Muslim countries and were forced to flee from and find refuge in Israel. Their spiritual homeland.
        You yourself seem like someone whose heart maybe in the right place but ill informed.

        Reply

    • Suhail Ahmad

      October 27, 2015 at 12:22 PM

      Peter. Your diatribe is a litany of well rehearsed, fabricated excuses. Indeed, it is an expose of your clearly arrogant, ignorant and pro-zionist perspective of the true history of Palestine. You have no experience of reliable first hand testimony of the realities of Palestinian suffering yet you have the bare faced audacity to label Mia Oudeh a liar. Nothing could be further from the truth.

      In a BBC documentary expose aired a decade ago, it addressed the illegal state of israel’s refusal for the last 55 years to sign the ‘non-proliferation treaty’ and declare the true extent of it’s nuclear, biological and chemical warheads.

      Indeed, in an article published (c.March 2015) by the Guardian news paper, it was estimated by independent analysts that the illegal state of israel has in excess of 200 nuclear warheads, all of which was donated by usa over the last several decades. It has also been estimated that the illegal state of israel houses in excess of 400 large yield chemical and biological warheads. It is therefore pertinent to note that the illegal state of israel holds more WMD’s than the whole of Europe and Asia combined.

      Furthermore, israel continues to flagrantly violate UN regulations and international human rights law by deploying the banned chemical weapon ‘white phosporus bombs’ against the innocent Palestinian population. Yet the UN does not have the backbone to take stern action against the criminal state of israel, but to only give lip-service.

      It is also a well established fact that usa has for the last three decades been ‘donating’ $3,816,000,000 per annum to the illegal state of israel. Indeed, in a newspaper article covered by the Guardian in February 2015, it was revealed that the british government sold in excess of £2 billion worth of weaponry to israel.

      Clearly in the eyes of liars and perverters of truth and justice (such as yourself), it is the Palestinian youth armed to the teeth with sticks and stones who harbour the most dangerous WMD’s. It is racist bigots of your ilk who falsely accuse Palestinians and indeed muslims as a whole of being the biggest threat to world peace, when in reality it is israel, usa and it’s poodle (the uk) who are the biggest threat to world peace.

      Reply

      • Truth

        November 2, 2015 at 2:52 AM

        Suhail Ahmad
        You keep stating Israel is an illegal state. The more you say it doesn’t make it so. You seem ignorant of the fact Israel was created by UN Resolution in 1947. Nothing illegal about it.
        Israel having nuclear weapons. I wonder why the need for such a deterrent? Please consider the centuries of anti Jewish genocide and persecution. Consider the inherent Muslim prejudice against Jews, referring to them as dogs and apes. Consider Arab nations and militant groups swearing for Israel’s extermination. Consider the wars of 1948, 1967 and 1973 all started by the Arab nations that surround Israel.
        Chemical and phosphorus weapons? Of course Israel is often at fault. But why single out Israel ? It is well documented Arabs armies have used chemical weapons over the years
        So what if the US supplies weapons to Israel. It also supplies weapons to numerous Middle East countries. And I guess you know that the US and Europe are some of the largest donors in aid to the Palestinians or perhaps you chose to overlook that ?
        Israel, US and UK a threat to world peace? Perhaps you have more faith in your ISIS Caliphate. Perhaps you endorsed Sadam Hussein paying financial rewards the families of Palestinian suicide bombers ? or the fascist genocidal rhetoric and acts of the likes of Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas.
        Yes I feel for the Palestinians as we all should but clearly in the eyes of liars and perverters of truth and justice such as you think it impossible for Muslim Arabs to be without fault.

        Reply

    • Sarah

      December 28, 2015 at 3:12 PM

      Peter and Truth– ignorant and blinded by stupidity.

      Reply

  3. Mike Bee

    October 26, 2015 at 11:50 PM

    Letter & info brilliant. Helpful to those outside conflict. Will share with as many as I can.
    -Kind regards and hopes for a brighter future

    Reply

  4. EMPRESS

    October 27, 2015 at 3:36 AM

    trust me this writer is sooo brilliant……the writer did the characterisation soo well,you hit your point bullishly but intelligently……May Allah protect our palestinians folks from these deatheaters and voldemorts in the guise of Israelis

    Reply

  5. Aafia

    October 27, 2015 at 8:33 AM

    Oh My God! this letter is so well written.
    Love it.

    Reply

  6. Bāqiya

    October 27, 2015 at 8:52 AM

    Astaghfirullah!

    “…Palestinians, many of whom rely on Harry Potter as a means of inspiration and escapism…”

    Your solution is facing you right in the eyeballs – Jihad (fighting) for the sake of Allah under the noble shade of the Khilāfa – but alas, you choose to call it illegitimate and extreme. Just like how the same filthy jews killing you now denied Rasulullah صلى الله عليه و سلم as the seal of the prophets when what they knew came to them.

    Check your wala and baraa, oh lost and confused soul.

    You are appealing to a jew (Rowlings) who is but only standing up for her fellow jews to sympathise with your pain! Or the crusader coalition (UN) which gave them an identity, prestige and power to strip them of it?!

    Stand up for the ONLY muslims (even IF you’re not one) striving to restore the justice of Allah in His earth.

    Bāqiya wa tatamaddad, bi idhnillah.

    Reply

    • Suhail Ahmad

      October 30, 2015 at 7:00 PM

      Assalamalaikum sister Baqiya. TBH, I was also very disappointed when I read sister Mia state how she and many of our Palestinian brothers and sisters viewed the plagiarised, fictitious work of jk. rowling as a source of inspiration and escapism. Sadly, she has forgotten that she is supposed to be first and foremost a muslimah and secondly, a Palestinian. There are many historical figures in the Islamic world whom she could have used as inspiration, yet she chose this drivel instead. I have read the reply given by jk rowling and I was not at all surprised to find that she adamantly stuck to her guns by indirectly stating she is right and pro-Palestinian supporters are wrong. What I found particularly worrying about her diatribe was the example of ‘bumbledore’ going to the hilltop to sacrifice himself for the ‘greater good’. After reading the symbolism embedded within her response, it seemed to me she likened the Palestinians to ‘bumbledore’ and they should die for the greater good (the supposed greater good meaning to allow, the illegal, criminal state of israel to survive and flourish). What I also found interesting is that jk rowling completely ignored Mia Oudeh’s invitation to meet Palestinian people. This suggests an unwillingness to meet the ‘other side’. I have said all along, this was just a publicity stunt and lip service, yet her loyalties lie deeply rooted in israel. Finally, yes you are right as jk rowling is actually a quarter jewish via her paternal ancestry (her father was a psychiatrist and the progeny of an Austrian jewish ‘companion’).

      Reply

  7. masood

    October 27, 2015 at 12:38 PM

    very well written, good comparison, shows the true face of Jews of Israel.

    Reply

  8. Mo

    October 27, 2015 at 12:57 PM

    Its about time the MUSLIM community looks at ourselves and stop the encouragement of violence. The letter is full of false information and untruths.

    Reply

    • Jamila

      October 27, 2015 at 4:30 PM

      Are u really a Muslim.

      Reply

    • Suhail Ahmad

      October 27, 2015 at 4:43 PM

      ‘Mo’ – Whoever you are, kindly stop hiding behind a fake muslim name. The usage of ‘Mo’ and not ‘Muhammad’ is a total give away, as it is often used by the detractors and enemies of Islam. The only letter full of false information and untruths comes from people of your ilk.

      Reply

    • M.Mahmud

      October 27, 2015 at 10:42 PM

      Well since the time of the Sahaba there have been believers and….another kind.

      Do enjoy this life of yours Mo.

      Reply

  9. Suhail Ahmad

    October 27, 2015 at 4:52 PM

    TBH, it is highly unlikely JK Rowling will reply to this sister (Mia Oudeh), as her signature on the ‘culture for coexistence’ letter was nothing more than a publicity stunt.

    Reply

  10. safiya

    October 28, 2015 at 4:52 PM

    Although there is sympathy for the people of Gaza and West Bank for their misery, this emotional appeal needs to be seen in a world of over half a dozen severe conflict zones.Are we as Muslims willing to boycott chinese goods because china annexed Tibet in 1956 more brutal than even the Israeli conflict and has simply dissipated the tibetean population by moving millions of Han chinese to the plateau? What about the 95 year old Kurdistan conflict, where the muslim world leader Turkey has been at genocidal proportions,banning even the use of Kurdish language for over 20 years? Can we boycott Turkey’s products? What about Pakistan’s annexation of Balochistan and assassinations over 7 decades?Ban those holier than thous?That as Muslims we must stand up for Justice for all, not for self-interests alone. This is the reason why frustration at the world’s muted inspection of the palestinian problem has to be contextualized in view of our own callousness to suffering of others.
    We have to speak up for the other, for others to speak up for us.Justice is not about the end with any means, its the means which dictates ultimately what the end will be.And our means have been too narrow vision-ed, that it also fails to see what drives the rest of the world to a conclusion.

    Reply

  11. Aksa

    October 29, 2015 at 11:23 PM

    I was going to post a long comment full of facts and logic; but Peter beat me to it. It’s unfortunate that the Muslim community so easily falls into a racist, hate-filled pit of genocidal fantasies. Oh well, scratch some Muslims; find a Nazi.

    Reply

    • Suhail Ahmad

      October 30, 2015 at 5:00 PM

      Aksa. The inherent problem is that hate preachers and racist bigots such as yourself and Peter, wouldn’t know the truth (or facts) even if it hit you on the nose. You refuse to accept that the west (particularly usa, uk and israel) are directly responsible for the atrocities that have been committed in the middle east. So let me remind you that it was not Muslims who started WW1 and WW2. It was not Muslims who murdered 6 million European jews. It was not Muslims who murdered 20 million aborigines. It was not Muslims who nuked Hiroshima and Nagasaki and murdered almost one million innocent civilians. It was not the Muslims who criminally invaded (and terrorised) Vietnam & Cambodia. It was not the Muslims who murdered 10 million North American Indians, stole their land and almost forced the rightful heirs of the land into extinction. It was not the Muslims who murdered 50 million South American Indians. Nor was it the Muslims who murdered and crippled half a million Indians in Bhopal via the american company ‘Union Carbide’ chemical leak in December 1984 (31 years later, usa still refuses to pay a single cent of $1 billion compensation owed to victims). It was also not the Muslims who illegally and criminally invaded Iraq & Afghanistan and murdered 1.1 million civilians in Iraq alone. It is also not the Muslims who took 180 million Africans as slaves, of whom 88% died and their bodies were thrown into the Atlantic ocean.

      No, it was not the Muslims who committed these and so many other atrocities. Indeed, the only people imbued with racist, hate-filled, genocidal fantasies are monsters like you, peter and your war mongering ‘devout christian’ brethren the likes of ‘tony b. liar’ and ‘circus chimp george bush’. So the next time you have the cheek to falsely accuse and demonise Muslims, be aware that it will be a Muslim who will speak truthfully and put odious people like you to shame.

      Reply

  12. Stan Squires

    November 6, 2015 at 2:57 PM

    I am from Vancouver,Canada and I wanted to say that all Palestinians and supporters of Palestine should condemn J.K. Rowling for her support of Israel by her saying that there should be no cultural boycott of Israel.She is supporting Israeli apartheid by saying these things.The universities in England that decided to boycott Israeli universities and anyone doing business with Israel are showing the way forward with regard to Israel. J.K Rowling should be doing the same.The majority of people in the world supports the Palestinian People in their fight against Israeli apartheid.

    Reply

  13. Alyssa

    March 10, 2016 at 3:48 PM

    Thank you for sharing this, Mia. I know I’m late to the discussion here but just saw this, and as a vociferous fellow potter fan and American Jew, I really appreciate this perspective and your reading of potter, and I truly understand and empathize with your plight, and with those living in what is undeniably an open-air prison in Palestine.

    I certainly recognize the atrocities committed by my government, as well as those of the Israeli government and can fully understand why you hate them after what has been done to you.

    I have been to Israel, and have met many amazing Israelis and Palestinians, and know that most people want peace, and the actions of one’s government doesn’t reflect the majority of everyday people living there. I do just generally wonder what the Palestinian peace plan would look like? There are many Arab villages and towns in Israel, and I’ve met many who say that their lives are 100x better there than living in Muslim countries, and who say that while the living conditions in those towns aren’t as good as their Jewish towns, a lot of it is because their own municipal governments are corrupt and take Israeli money meant for infrastructure and schools etc, for themselves. But, to me, the fact that Muslims and Arabs are allowed to live in Israel demonstrates a willingness to coexist, despite everything, which is something that I just don’t see reciprocated in Palestinian’s idea of a “solution” and I think that’s really the crux of israel’s unwillingness to make further concessions.

    I understand where you’re coming from with your analogy of asking hermoine to just talk things out and be merry after being tortured, but how does any nation emerge from war and war crimes and move forward if the sides don’t agree at some point to stop the hate and violence and try something different? Are Palestinians willing to co-exist with Israel and with Jews? The Israeli’s argue that any concessions they have made in terms of land etc, is not met with any good will of their own and always just seems that the Palestinians will not be happy until they have it all-and until all the Jews are gone. We both know that will never ever happen, so what is the path forward? At what point to Palestinians decide that they love their children more than they hate the Jews? I think that is what Rowling meant with her Dumbledore response. Nobody wanted Dumbledore to die-it wasn’t fair, but he had to swallow is pride for any hope to end thewar for future generations.

    Again, I fully understand the anger at the daily injustices Palestinians face, and agree that it’s only perpetuating animosity, but one also has to realize that the draconian security measures exist because if they didn’t than the terrorist attacks and stabbings in Israel increase dramatically. Being in the IDF is mandatory for Israelis because very few mothers would ever want to put their children in harms way. I just don’t really understand how Palestinian mothers can say to their children-go and kill yourself, as long as you kill another’s child I will be honored to sacrifice you? I understand the desperate circumstances they are faced with but where does the madness stop? Ultimately, I think the Jews have at least demonstrated a willingness to coexist for the sake of their children, and that is just not a sentiment that seems to be reciprocated; a non-starter for Israelis and essentially rendering any peace process moot.

    This is just how I see things. I won’t pretend to understand what it’s like to live in your shoes but I am a realist. Yes, the Israeli’s are much more powerful, they “won” the wars after all (and as a humanist I won’t excuse any of the bloodshed) but this is the state of things…so again, when will the Palestinians decide they love their children more than they hate the Jews?

    Thank you for your consideration…I truly hope you will live in peace, safety, and prosperity. <3

    Reply

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