Statement on Attending Israel Trek

When conflicts rip us apart, the stars are always an excellent reminder of our inextricable connection to one another. This image is of the Double Cluster, a set of two open star clusters in the constellation of Perseus, will be visible tonight and for the next few months over both Israeli and Palestinian skies.

For the last 13 months, I have–as with many of you–struggled to reconcile two (seemingly) diametrically opposed desires: To end Netanyahu's unjustifiable siege on the people of Palestine and unnecessary aggression on the people of Lebanon, and to protect Israel’s legitimacy as both the ancestral home of (among others) the Jewish people and the legal occupant of the original borders. While neither side, it appears, cares to admit it, the passionate undertones of this conflict have caused even the most grounded among us to become tribalistic–to disregard suffering if it refutes our argument, and to cheer suffering if it supports our desires. And even though the scale of suffering over this last year has been, in my opinion, disproportionately one-sided, both sides have displayed equally blatant disregard for the suffering of their adversaries.

I have watched major university clubs, including the Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee–with whom I used to protest when I was a dual enrollment student–proclaim that “Today, October 7th, 2024, marks one year since the heroic efforts of the Palestinian resistance,” only to see–on that same day–one of my favorite artists excuse Palestinian suffering on the basis that Hamas does not protect LGBTQ+ rights. While borne out of frustration and passion–both for one’s country, one’s people, or one’s religion–neither are justifiable human rights responses; in conflict, double negatives do not make a positive.

In my disgust with the rhetoric, I have expressed myself on several occasions with the self-proclaimed “Palestinian resistance” at American universities here, letting my frustration control my messaging on Instagram story strings and in other contexts. I have not similarly criticized the Israeli activities in an unacceptable manner (because, in my mind, the condemnation of genocide is not unacceptable). As much as I attempt to speak from a moral high ground in this message, I have sometimes let my passion control me. I am, like you, an untrained swimmer trying to navigate an ocean of despair. As much as I empathize, I have made mistakes.

I try now to come from a place of understanding. I have read the pieces that many of you have prescribed to me, diversified my news sources (I read Al Jazeera and The Times of Israel daily, alongside the usual dose of New York Times and National Review) to incorporate different sources of information, and avoided messages of frustration directed at members of either side of this conflict. And yet these measures, though effective, have not provided me the positions that both sides' most passionate adherents cling to.

And so, hoping to understand the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at its origin (and to see some family for the first time), I decided to apply for Israel trek. And I was accepted. And, after much thought and much deliberation with friends and family (about safety, morality and all the like), I accepted my spot and paid the attendance fee.

Now, as you guys might guess by the formal announcement of this commitment, I do not take this decision lightly. Indeed, I have friends and family on both physical sides of this conflict. As someone stuck in the middle of this conflict for many reasons, I felt it was necessary that I gather the information at the source, instead of resorting to the secondhand accounts and often out-of-touch rhetoric that is amply available here. 

But, by that same measure, I recognize that this trip will only provide one side of the conflict for me, when really I desire to hear both. For this reason, I extend my hand to anyone with the opposite stake who is willing to share their opinions on the conflict with me (contact information is provided below). When it is possible, I also hope to, for this same reason, visit Palestine and get the perspectives of people living there (even though, I admit, that is not possible at this moment).

In my mind, Israel-Palestine is a conflict that, while clearly one-sided over this last year, has no clear perpetrator (or, equivalently, two clear perpetrators). It is a conflict that has involved the most persecuted religious group in human history, one of the most persecuted ethnic groups of this century, and the rise to power of brutal autocrats such as Benjamin Netanyahu and Yahya Sinwar. As much as a scorched-Earth fall of Israel or Palestine seems convenient to some members of both sides, there is, in my mind, no clear solution. 

When I visit Israel, I hope to obtain an immersive cultural introduction to Jewish and Israeli culture, see family, and experience the natural and historical scenery of the Levant. But my priority, since I applied, has been to engage in the tough conversations about one of the toughest and most convoluted conflicts many of us will ever encounter. I am steadfast in this utmost commitment, and I shall sacrifice none of my moral compass to engage in any activities which may subvert this commitment.

As always, you are welcome to agree with me, criticize me, or even excoriate me. No matter your position, and no matter how you think of me, I will always remember the fact that we both are united under the same sky, borne out of the same Earth, and destined to fall upon that same Earth. As much as we wish to divide amongst ourselves, there may be no mistake that we are inextricably bound to one another. While I, as with you, have failed to live to this message at times, I hope to use this morally complicated experience to test the utility of agape, and demonstrate that, even in the incomprehensibly immoral violence unfolding in Israel and Palestine, the love of all human beings can be duly recognized.

As I mentioned, I invite (and, indeed, request) you to criticize me or message me your opinions. I would ask that, if you are in Cambridge or Wisconsin, you meet with me in-person, as I am not responsive enough to have long conversations on messages. I have provided necessary contact information below in case you do wish to:

Email: williamgottemoller@gmail.com

Instagram: @william0billy

Facebook: @williamgottemoller

Phone number: available upon request through any of the above mentioned platforms.

With love and 看破紅塵,

William J. Gottemoller