The Symbolism of Earth Day Commemoration

When Palestinian identity triumphed over Israeli citizenship

Despite the relative decline in the revival of national occasions, Earth Day holds a special symbolism for all Palestinians. This commemoration has remained alive to this day, not only in the consciousness of the Palestinian people but also in the consciousness of all free people around the world.

On that day, March 30, 1976, Palestinians in the occupied territories engaged in demonstrations, sit-ins, and actions resembling civil disobedience; they declared a general strike in towns within the Green Line, especially in the Galilee, in protest against the policies of judaization and the enforcement of the oppressive racist law (the Absentees' Property Law). The occupying authorities seized Palestinian lands in Galilee towns, particularly in areas such as Araaba, Sakhnin, Deir Hanna, and Arab al-Sawa'id, among others. During the confrontations, where the occupation army used live ammunition, 6 martyrs fell, and about 300 were injured, in addition to the arrest of many Palestinians.

In that uprising, the steadfastness of the Palestinians was manifested in their defense of their land and their attachment to their national identity, which the enemy believed it could eradicate simply by granting Palestinians Israeli identity and allowing them to form their own political parties and participate in elections; however, Palestinians refused to compromise or abandon their land and national identity and affirmed that Palestinian identity is stronger than Israeli citizenship. Prominent national figures participated in Earth Day, including Tawfiq Ziad, Emil Habibi, Samih al-Qasim, Tawfiq Toubi, heads of local Arab councils, the Land Defense Committee, and others.

This popular uprising or intifada confirmed the reality of Zionist ambitions in the land of Palestine and alerted the enemy to the danger posed by Palestinians of 1948 to its plans for establishing an exclusively Jewish state; thus, the occupation authorities attempted by all means to strike and scatter the unity of the Palestinian people in the interior, by creating internal strife and divisions based on regional or religious grounds, and by attempting to buy loyalty. They also worked to spread organized crime and drugs and to corrupt the value system after they failed to weaken their national identity. The enemy has had some success in certain cases, such as the proliferation of parties and electoral lists and the rise in crime, yet this did not lead to breaking the backbone of Palestinians in the interior or severing their ties with the rest of their people.

There are still symbols and national leaders confronting the enemy's racist policies, demanding equal rights, and rejecting its politics against the Palestinian people in general; among these figures, we can mention: Ayman Odeh, Ahmad Tibi, Mohammed Barakeh, Jamal Zahalka, Sami Abu Shehada, Osama Saadi, Raed Salah, and other academics, journalists, and workers in research centers. There are serious attempts to form a joint list for the upcoming elections.

As for the significance and symbolism of this commemoration outside the 1948 territories, it has manifested in the fact that our battle with the Zionist enemy revolves around the land and the historical narrative; the struggle over land and narrative is also a struggle over identity, culture, and national existence, reaffirming the unity of Palestinian arenas.

If Palestinians have risen against Israel’s appropriation of some dunams, what should they do now, as settlement projects have expanded, and Israel is proceeding to annex the entire West Bank after announcing the annexation of Jerusalem, in addition to what is happening in the Gaza Strip?

It is true that most of the world’s peoples have freed themselves from the influence and narrative of the Zionist narrative, revealing all of Israel's lies and those who ally with it and support its racist and aggressive policies. The world has also become sure that the occupation is the cause of all the region's problems, and that the essence of the conflict, which threatens world peace, is the Zionist occupation and not any other alleged threats. What remains necessary is to adhere to the truth and the Palestinian narrative and storyline.

So all respect to our people inside the Green Line and everywhere in the world, and all appreciation and respect to all the free people of the world who continue to commemorate Earth Day; from the steadfast Moroccan people who began commemorating this occasion even before its arrival, to the Egyptian and Algerian people and the rest of the free peoples around the world.