There are many Western liberals who insist they care about democracy and universal human rights. They also insist they care about our struggle in the Middle East. I have no reason to doubt that they are sincere.
Often these same people say very hurtful things. When we call them out on it, instead of self-reflecting about how they have hurt us, they double down and take it personally. Fine - chalk it up to personalities or miscommunication...
But: Why is it our job as native Middle Eastern activists to reach out to them and explain just how hurtful their words often are? Why is it not their job to reach out to us? Why?
Why are we the ones who have to bend over backwards to accommodate them? On top of our already difficult lives, on top of our trauma, on top of our daily struggles, on top of our marginalization? Is this not unfair?
I'm not trying to score points here. I'm genuinely trying to understand because I've lost sleep over this for two nights now. Do they not care as much as we thought they care? Are they not as much of allies as we thought they were?
