Bombing, and military violence more broadly, creates a tremendous amount of disability. It has therefore been tremendously disappointing to see how so many disabled activists and organizations have been unable to condemn the genocide in Palestine that has resulted in more than 75,000 deaths directly and more than 16,000 deaths indirectly through January 2025 (source: Gaza Mortality Survey) and many more cases of injury and disability.

The genocide in Palestine is a public health emergency and a disability rights and justice issue that all individuals committed to improving health and the lives of persons with disabilities should be engaged on. Disabled people who have experienced physical disability or live with post-traumatic stress disorder, in particular, should be able to find empathy for a population that has been subjected to some of the worst imaginable violence. The health system in Gaza also has been damaged in a way that health care and public health professionals should be able to also clearly understand, from a humanitarian perspective.

Palestine has been under occupation by the state of Israel for decades, and this state violence is largely enabled by financing and technology from the United States. The military industrial complex in the United States, which is deeply intertwined with the United States government and with educational systems across this country directly profits from the ongoing oppression of the Palestinian people.

Actors in the United States have a responsibility to try and divest from the corporations and political forces that are enabling this. I have written elsewhere about my own journey of divestment. Activists, writers, professors, and others who speak out about the genocide have regularly faced forms of censorship and harassment. I want to name that there is an important distinction between complacency in taking action and speaking out versus individuals making strategic decisions around how they take action and speak out, given the reality that they or their organizations may face material consequences for doing so.

Discrimination against people of the Jewish and Muslim faiths are important issues that warrant societal consideration and responsive policy actions. The genocide in Palestine, however, is an issue that relates to the conduct of the Israeli and United States government, and it is entirely appropriate for individuals working in all sectors of society to speak critically on this issue, like any other political topic. Describing any and all criticism of the Israeli and United States government as anti-Semitic is a tired tactic used by political actors and organizations.

I have written publicly about this issue in 2023 and 2025, and I wanted to do so again here in 2026. An organization responding to the starvation conditions in Gaza (that are being artificially imposed by the state of Israel) that could use your support is the Sameer Project. I have personally contributed to this organization through my fund.

Despite claims of a ceasefire, Palestinians continue to live under the violence of occupation and genocide. While some have moved on from thinking about this issue, it remains urgently relevant for all. It is true that there are many global issues to pay attention to; however, this one is particularly important for Americans given our governments direct role in funding this genocide (and thus our potential to stop it).