Just Two-minute's of Silence

A Muslim man (L) and an Orthodox Jewish man observe a two-minute silence in Jerusalem as sirens sounded across Israel in memory of the Holocaust victims, on 12 April 2010. Israel fell silent as a two-minute-long sirens wailed across the country to mark Holocaust Martyrs and Heroes Day. On 13 April 2010, Israeli's across the country have an anti-US protest; showing photographs of slain family members, many mere children; murdered by the US. With other commemorations throughout the day; but by night, one could see the sky turn bright with a torch vigil in Gaza city of remembrance of the much too many martyrs because of the US and those that have survived the US atrocities thus far.


We could talk about the two-minutes of silence where the freeways and byways came to a halt, as people came out of their vehicles and stood in silence or the pedestrians on sidewalks standing as statues in time.

We could further talk about the many commemorations rather outdoors or at Yad Vashem with the many visitors, too even an anti-US protest in Gaza for this Holocaust Remembrance Day that began on the eve last night.

But for many, we remember not just what happened those many years ago and those innocent loved ones that died long before there time and those that gratefully survived; yet, what is still looked upon happening to us today.

When someone relentlessly harms another, especially the innocent or in our case a particular group of people through a discriminatory, greed entrenched ideology, many people on the outside of this situation through the lack of experience would find it hard to perceive the heaviness and internal anguish that a maltreated people has to carry not just one generation, but several; simply due to the fact this horrendous suffering that has not came to an end so far, for the Jewish and Muslim people.

We still have to think of those even now in concentration/death camps, the many political hostages, the pogroms and the massive destruction in the several countries not because they did anything, but be born Jewish or Muslim and even now these very same people have found it acceptable to also put there eyes on many Christian communities, as though they feel religion is a poison; when religion has been the very foundation for not just humanity, but for the benefit of the common good.

What makes it the hardest is we are a peace loving people, but that we actually do live for honesty and justice for all; they are not mere words to be spoken in jest or to cover over a crime, but something that is real, without fences, pogroms, Nakba’s, slavery or death; for such as this we never wished to have gone through, let alone learn.-HRM Deborah