• Ducks@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Man. I know the Palestinians have it rough, but the Lebanese do as well. That country has seen so much turmoil. I feel so sad for the people of Lebanon.

    As a Jewish person, who has met Lebanese who hate me because of my ethnicity and said as much to me, I wish I could apologize for the atrocities committed either by Israel or with their permission over the many decades. I wish an apology from some random American Jew with no direct family from Israel can apologize for what “my people” have done. I am also an atheist, but I am praying for their safety. These people have suffered enough. The history of Lebanon is horrible, so much death and suffering. So much caused by the Israelis, Phalangist, Syrians, and yes, even the Palestinians. This whole situation hearts my heart.

    edit: I’ll make clear, of course in this situation Israel needs to deal with Hezbollah. But Lebanese does not equal Hezbollah. Just like Palestinian does not equal Hamas.

    • bingbong@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      1 year ago

      It’s alright, the most you can do is to continue being a good person. None of what’s happening is your fault. The crimes of members of “your people” do not reflect upon you as an individual nor on the Jewish diaspora at large. The same way that the crimes of Hamas do not reflect on the Palestinians at large.

      • Ducks@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Thank you for kind words, and I do know that deep down. But being very, very familiar with Lebanon’s history, it makes me cry to think of everything these people have been through and the horrors awaiting them if this escalates. I know the Palestinians are going through the same thing now in Gaza, but for whatever reason the news of what may happen in Lebanon has hit me harder. It is probably due to my personal experiences being on the receiving end of antisemitism from a Lebanese person and feeling like I deserved it because of what “my people” did. When this happened to me, I didn’t understand. Why did he hate me? My family fled Europe and came to America. I have no connection aside from being Jewish to modern day Israel. I took that as an opportunity to learn about the history, if I am going to be associated with the actions of Israel then I should learn the history. Now I know the history, I can understand why they have that hate.