The inspiration for this blog came in part from John Sayles’ wonderful 1995 film, Lone Star.  Set in a small Texas city, with Anglo, Mexican-American, and African-American populations, the story segues from the past to the present and back again.  It portrays characters both as they are now and as they were in previous generations.  Good and evil deeds are unearthed.  The male protagonist, an honorable sheriff, discovers his father’s villainy, even though the father had helped overthrow an even worse sheriff before him.  We learn that an overbearing restaurant owner, who berates her Mexican staff for “not speaking English” and condemns “wet backs” who enter the United States against the law, crossed the Rio Grande illegally herself.  The female protagonist, her daughter and a teacher, ends the film by saying, “Forget the Alamo.”

     This sparked what I have been thinking about the Middle East, most particularly the Hamas-Israeli War.  History in that region goes back for millennia.  No one ever forgets the wrongs done to them in the past.  But this feuding prevents any solution today.  Here are two current examples.  What Hamas did to Israeli civilians –- killing and taking well over a hundred of them hostage –- was horrific.  But it was not a Holocaust, that is destruction or slaughter on a mass scale.  For Israelis and their government to call it that, as they have and continue to do, prevents any resolution of the conflict.

     Conversely, the oft-quoted Palestinian slogan, “From the river [Jordan] to the sea [the Mediterranean],” which refers to Palestinian territory, also implies that Israel, which occupies the same area, should not exist.  This saying also prevents any resolution of the current war.

     I have spent my life teaching and writing history.  I think historically and believe that people need to know history to understand the present.  But not in this case!  To resolve this horrible war, I believe history needs to be forgotten.  Instead of repeating old grievances, treat your opponents as human beings.  They have the same needs and emotions as you.  That is the only successful way to deal with this dreadful situation.  If Israelis conceive of this struggle as a “Holocaust,” they can ignore the discrepancy between the hundreds of Israelis Hamas killed and the tens of thousands –- many of them children – that they have.  If Gazans keep declaring “From the river to the sea,” they give tacit approval to eradicating Israel completely.       

     Instead, I believe that both sides need to forget history and focus on the present.  Treat your opponents as human beings, as human as you yourselves are.  I think that will provide the only possible solution to this ghastly war.

    For almost a year I’ve been writing a memoir which has consumed most of my creative energy.  I’m now working on the eighth and final chapter.  The first one, “History,” begins with a description of a postcard I’d saved for decades.  It portrays a girl of about 10 who looks just as I did then, with black hair held back by a band.  She’s reading a book and all you can see is the title “History.”  A caption says, “I’m not cynical, I’ve just been taking notes.”  I then delineate how history has shaped my thinking and career.  The second chapter, “Family,” briefly traces the 19th-century roots of my ancestors in the United States –- my father’s family settled in Shreveport, LA; my mother’s in Johnstown, PA.  It then focuses on my immediate family life in New York City.  “Marriage” first describes my marriage to Art Anderson, whom I wed in 1965, when I was twenty-two, and left in 1976.  It then goes through my long relationship with Stanley Malinovich, whom I met in 1984.  “Sex” deals with the period in between, when I (and many others) were very active sexually.  “Friends” goes through the important friendships in my life, beginning with Judy Zinsser, whom I met in 9th grade and still am close to today.  It ends by describing a few lost friendships.  “Therapy and Medicine” deals both with two therapists I consulted and the many times that medicine has saved my life.  “Politics” describes my activism from childhood until today.  And the last one, “Living,” discusses what has enabled me to keep on going.

     All of these except the last one have been read and commented on by the wonderful German Women’s History Study Group, going strong since the 1980s.  They’ve been immensely helpful, even though little of this manuscript deals with German women’s history.  For instance, they told me that I couldn’t just say, “It was the seventies” in the Sex chapter, since everyone younger than me wouldn’t understand what that meant.  When I finish, I’ll need to rewrite everything.  But rewriting is easier than writing.  I still need a good title.  And when I’m done, I’ll need an agent and may well ask you for help with that.

     In the meantime, I’m very impressed with Bernie Sander’s remarks on the current Israeli-Palestinian crisis.  Sanders, the long-term Vermont senator, is my age and like me, a non-religious Jew.  Here’s his statement:

Hamas’ terrorist assault on Israel will have horrific short- and long-term consequences.

As a result of this attack, thousands of Israelis and Palestinians – including many women and children – have been killed and injured. That toll will rise. The gunning down of young Israelis at a music festival is an image the world will not soon forget.

Longer term, this attack is a major setback for any hope of peace and reconciliation in the region – and justice for the Palestinian people. For years, people of good will throughout the world, including some brave Israelis, have struggled against the blockade of Gaza, the daily humiliations of occupation in the West Bank, and the horrendous living conditions faced by so many Palestinians. For many, it is no secret that Gaza has been an open-air prison, with millions of people struggling to secure basic necessities. Hamas’ terrorism will make it much more difficult to address that tragic reality and will embolden extremists on both sides, continuing the cycle of violence.

Right now, the international community must focus on reducing humanitarian suffering and protecting innocent people on both sides of this conflict. The targeting of civilians is a war crime, no matter who does it. Israel’s blanket denial of food, water, and other necessities to Gaza is a serious violation of international law and will do nothing but harm innocent civilians. The United States has rightly offered solidarity and support to Israel in responding to Hamas’ attack. But we must also insist on restraint from Israeli forces attacking Gaza and work to secure UN humanitarian access. Let us not forget that half of the two million people in Gaza are children. Children and innocent people do not deserve to be punished for the acts of Hamas.