The Islam Awareness Blog: Norman Finkelstein: Palestinians Tried EVERYTHING before October 7th
In this Exclusive presentation, Dr. Norman Finkelstein examines the framework through which we assess violence, resistance, and state power. His central argument: what unfolded in Gaza cannot be understood within the conventional language of “war” or “self-defense”—but requires a more precise legal and moral category.
In war, the objective is military defeat. In genocide, the civilian population is the target. Finkelstein’s challenge: name a single battle in Gaza. The absence of conventional military engagement, he contends, reveals the operation’s true nature.
Using the Nat Turner rebellion as historical parallel, Finkelstein forces us to confront how context is erased when power controls the narrative. Who gets to define “violence” when the conditions that produce it are systematically ignored?
The 17-year blockade, the 2006 election sanctions, the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, the Great March of Return sniper fire—all documented, all dismissed. Finkelstein traces how every diplomatic, legal, and nonviolent avenue was met with escalation, not engagement.
Citing Frederick Douglass: “The thing worse than rebellion is the thing that causes rebellion.”
Israel forfeited its moral claim to self-defense long before October 7.
