Language

The words that we use are an important indication of what we think and believe. They also shape how we act and how we treat people.

In my own work and study (prior to coming to Palestine and Israel), I have been reading and talking about Compassionate Communication (a.k.a.: non-violent communication). There are many books, pamphlets, workshops, websites to learn about compassionate communication (I've listed a few at the end of the post), but there is a common theme through them all: we are, all of us, human.

When one uses one's thoughts and words to demonize the other, it is easy to loose compassion for the other and then it is a short slide down into treating the other badly (with abuses of words and actions). One of the central arguments of compassionate communication, then, is to think about (and speak about) all of the people whom you meet (even if you don't really like them) as human beings, and to work to build some sort of relationship with them.

But, I digress a bit from my intended topic....

What words do we use to describe the people in and the reality of this area?

Arabs or Palestinians? Arab is a general term that covers the people of a large geographic area. In the West Bank, people define themselves first as Palestinian. In Israel, which has a small population of people of Palestinian background, the term Arab-Israeli is most often used.

Israeli or Jew? This is a trickier question. Most people who live in Israel are Jewish, but not necessarily "religious" Jews. There are a significant number who are "secular", who consider themselves culturally and maybe even ethnically Jewish, but not necessarily religiously. They would most likely identify themselves as "Israeli." Those who self-identify as "Jewish" tend to be active in expressing their faith as reformed, conservative, orthodox or ultra-orthodox Jews. However, as I talk about or report about interactions between the two groups of people, I almost always use the terms "Palestinian" and "Israeli" (unless the topic is religious, and they I use "Palestinian Christian", "Palestinian Muslim" and "Israeli Jew").

Soldier: An Israeli person who serves in the Israeli Defense Forces. Each man and woman in Israel has a required two year term of service. He or she usually does this service following graduation from high school. Sometimes the soldiers come from other countries (every Jewish person in the world is welcome to come to Israel for a "birthright" tour and/or to immigrate. If one immigrates, one must also serve in the IDF; if one comes on tour, one may choose to serve in the IDF for the two years as well).

Military occupation: the use of military forces and military law to govern another people who live in land that is considered part of the occupying forces' land. Usually, military occupation is a temporary solution during a time of transition from war to peace. Rarely does military occupation last more than 40 years. In fact, one could argue that the only place it's lasted that long is in the West Bank.

West Bank or Palestine? When I am speaking of the occupation or about the Israeli government and military's relationship to the geographic area, I will often say West Bank. When I am speaking about the people who live here and about their life, or when I am conversing with them, I always speak of Palestine. An alternate form of that is "occupied Palestinian territories", or oPt. That is probably the most accurate term (it's also the longest).

Which brings up the question, why "West Bank" when the area is on the eastern side of the region mapped as "Israel"? The name comes from history: following in the 1948 war, the territory was occupied by the Transjordanian military and was labeled the "west bank" of the Jordan river. After 1967, when the Israelis "won back" the territory from the Jordanians (NB: name change of the country now called "Jordan") the name stayed.

Books about Compassionate Communication:
The Search for a Non-Violent Future, Michael Nagler
Non-Violent Communication, Marshall B. Rosenberg