Israel-Gaza: The Polarization of America’s Youth

(Note: I initially wrote this in the hopes that it would be an Op-Ed in another digital publication, but that didn't work out - so why not post my own content on my own blog? Just to remind you guys: These opinions are totally and completely my own and no one else's. I hope you enjoy.) 

Dead bodies scattered amongst destroyed roads, blown-up buildings, tragic scenes at hospitals and hysterical, grieving mothers. These are the images we have seen and heard throughout all mediums of media - social, broadcast, print, digital - coming from within the confines Israel and Gaza.

But let’s cut to the chase and lay down the facts of what really happened and what’s happening now: Three Israeli teenagers were kidnapped in the West Bank and killed, their bodies found 18 days after the kidnapping occurred. Israel arrested close to 300 Palestinians, many of them members of Hamas, who denied taking part in the kidnapping. 10 Palestinians were killed during the arrests. On the same night the bodies were found, Hamas shot rockets into Israel and Israel performed air strikes in Gaza. Then, in what believes to be retaliation, a Palestinian teenager was kidnapped and burned to death. This sparked riots in Palestinian areas, and 3 arrests were made to those responsible for his death. Hamas fired rockets into Israel, who minimized casualties with their Iron Dome missile defense system. Israel then launched their on-going offensive called “Operation Protective Edge” to destroy cross-border tunnels between Hamas and Israel. Since then, Israel and Gaza have been and are currently in a relatively successful ceasefire, in contrast to the many that have passed prior to this one. The number of Gaza deaths have exceeded 1,900 since the start of this conflict according to some sources, Israel has had 67 deaths thus far.

People on both sides are dying and have committed terrible acts. And even if the death count is lopsided, innocent people are dying on both sides of the conflict and and both sides have received artillery fire and missile fire. Yet, the American youth is picking sides, without even blinking or thinking twice.

There are many reasons as to why Americans, especially the younger set, are so polarized when it comes to this issue. The primary reason, however, is that majority of young Americans are lazy when it comes to analyzing current events, and they only internalize one side of the picture. They take the situation at face value, as it is presented to them, and they let the influences that surround them dictate their viewpoint.

They only read the headline and scan the front-page picture. They look at the #Gaza hashtag on Twitter and see graphic images of the dead. They see tweets reporting destruction under the #IsraelUnderFire hashtag and automatically feel their blood boil out of love for their homeland. They also look at the big and colorful chart at the top of a web article displaying of the death toll on both sides, but fail to actually read the article for context regarding Israel’s Iron Dome or Hamas’ civilian shields. As a result, they memorize the heavily imbalanced number of deaths on each side, like they would a score at a baseball game, without any cognizance as to why those numbers are so different. They think: dead people = bad. Who’s killing them? Israel. In consequence, they think: Israel = bad. Then they tweet “#FreePalestine” and spout off other Anti-Israel sentiments. The same train of thought also applies to those who support Israel and are against Gaza without knowing exactly why. Young people often feel the need to have an opinion about hot topics, so they patch one up with the superficial knowledge they have on whatever the topic is. They want to be “trendy” and “in-the-know,” and if it is trending on Twitter, they have to seem like they know all about it. 

Celebrities are prime examples for this rather stunted thought process and are fuel to the flame of obtaining and proclaiming extreme views without considering the various nuances of the issue. From Selena Gomez to Rihanna, many have dished out the “#FreePalestine” tweet, only to be bombarded with offense from their Jewish fans and others who are in support of Israel. Of course, backtracking and claiming the tweet as a “mistake” follows. But young and rather impressionable Americans who are obsessed with celebrity culture will, of course, follow in their misguided footsteps and will display their support for Palestine anyhow.

It’s also no question that young people’s views on the world are heavily influenced by their parents, friends, and family. Their environment shaping who they are is natural. If you are in a Jewish household, most likely you will be in support of Israel, and same with Islam and Hamas. But what worries me is that many of my peers don’t feel the need to actively examine the other side of the issue, or even give it the time of day. Without even having comprehensive knowledge of the topic at hand, they already have an opinion. Being surrounded by friends who are just as uninformed won’t help the matter either, and if these young people are eighteen years of age like I am, having uninformed voters at the voting booth is and will be a serious issue for America.


So I ask America’s young people to take a look at their views, ask why they think what they think, why they think so extremely, and to take a look at the facts that support their view and oppose their view. I would also ask America’s older folk to challenge the views of the young people around them. They shouldn’t be afraid to play Devil’s Advocate, and if they are, it only shows the lack of substance and spine their views really have. The Israel-Gaza issue has polarized the American youth to a severe level, and if this trend continues beyond the conflict at hand, I fear how my generation will handle the future’s great and inevitable problems.