Episode 6 - Heather’s Story: To Bear Witness to Injustice

SEND HEATHER A NOTE

If you’d like to drop Heather a note, please address it to her, and we’ll make sure she gets it!

RECOMMENDED ORGANIZATIONS

Heather shares about two human rights organizations, Yesh Din and Adalah. Yesh Din is an Israeli-led organization providing legal aid, including high court petitions, on behalf of Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Adalah is a Palestinian-led organization focusing on the Palestinian community with Israeli citizenship, providing legal representation and advocacy. If you would like to learn more about Yesh Din or make a donation, you can do so here. If you would like to learn more about Adalah or make a donation, you can do so here.

ISSUES RAISED

Check out these helpful resources for more information on the issues raised in this episode.

BORDER POLICE

Heather refers to the border police, which is a branch of Israel’s national police that is responsible for defending Israel’s borders. Officers are specially trained in combat, counterterrorism, riot control, and more, and they are usually deployed in Jerusalem and the West Bank.

JERUSALEMITES BEHIND THE WALL

In this episode, we explain that one-third to one-quarter of Jerusalemite Palestinians live behind the wall, but in an area that is still considered Jerusalem. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz provides more information on this in their article “15 years of separation: The Palestinians cut off from Jerusalem by the wall.”

ILLEGAL OUTPOSTS

Illegal outposts, like Israeli settlements, are Jewish, settled areas in the West Bank. In contrast to Israeli settlements, which are built in accordance with Israeli law (but in opposition to international law), illegal outposts are not legal according to Israeli law. At times they are evacuated by Israeli forces soon after they are erected, but many times, once a few outpost caravans move into an area (whether it is on Palestinian private land or on Israeli “state” land bordering an Israeli settlement), Israel often provides military protection to the outpost. Very often outposts eventually become “normalized,” and the area is later legitimized by Israeli law.

HILLTOP YOUTH

Hilltop youth refer to extreme, religious-nationalist Jewish youth who establish illegal outposts (see above definition) without a legal basis. They typically possess extremist ideology, and often, they are involved in violent acts against Palestinians, including vandalizing Palestinian schools, mosques, destroying olive trees, and other threatening and destructive behavior.  

FLYING CHECKPOINTS

Flying checkpoints refer to spontaneously established checkpoints, where Israeli military vehicles suddenly inhibit free movement between towns and cities in Palestine. These slow down movement considerably, and they are often erected arbitrarily: sometimes with security considerations in mind; other times simply to harass the population.

For more information on limitations to Palestinian freedom of movement, and to see the source for this information on flying checkpoints, see Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem’s report “Ground to a halt: Denial of Palestinians’ freedom of movement in the West Bank.”

MUSIC

The music featured in the intro and outro of the podcast comes from a live jam session of Palestinian musicians at Hosh Al Yasmine organic farm and restaurant located in Area C in Beit Jala.

The music tracks behind the interview and narration come from the following sources:

• "Ability," by Borrtex on the album Ability, which is available for noncommercial use under the Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 International License through the Free Music Archive.
• Oud, tracks 10, 11, and 12. Thank you to the New Vision Media Center for generously providing us access to these resources.
• The Wall, track 01. Thank you to the New Vision Media Center for generously providing us access to these resources.

*Some names have been changed for anonymity.

Disclaimer: The WOMEN BEHIND THE WALL Team does not necessarily agree with or endorse all the opinions and perspectives linked to in the resources above.