Gaza. You. Me. The World.

Christine Merser, July 30, 2025

The world is responsible for where we are now. And, I am a member, a citizen, of the world. Last I looked, so are you.

Decades of looking away. Decades of failed diplomacy and selective outrage. The powerful chose alliances over humanity. The international community tiptoed around the truth. And then October 7 happened. And in the months since, we’ve seen not only the complete destruction of Gaza, but also the destruction of moral credibility across the so-called free world.

Let’s start with us.

The unraveling started before Trump returned to the White House. Biden was already making political calculations. After the Hamas attack, he had a brief window to lead with moral clarity and strategic restraint. He could have drawn a line between supporting Israel’s right to defend itself and enabling the destruction of an entire population. Instead, he hesitated. He wanted to hold on to the American Jewish vote heading into the 2024 election? He thought he could do both, protect Israel and keep Palestinian civilians alive. That illusion disintegrated almost immediately.

We funded the weapons. We stood by Netanyahu. We asked for restraint in private and offered unconditional support in public. Gaza suffered, and the United States watched.

Then Trump returned. And the cruelty became policy.

What had been a humanitarian crisis accelerated into a campaign of deliberate starvation and punishment. Food shipments blocked. Aid convoys attacked. Water shut off. Tens of thousands dead. And not one person in Trump’s administration attempted to stop it. Not one aide. Not one advisor. Not one soul in the room tried to rein him in or demand that U.S. support come with any conditions at all.

Because this White House is not filled with public servants. It is filled with cowards. They are not strategists. They are loyalists. No one is trying to protect the United States. No one is thinking about long-term stability or what happens when the entire Middle East catches fire. No one is asking what becomes of American credibility. They are only thinking about their own jobs, their own influence, their own proximity to Trump’s favor. They will not cross him. Not over Gaza. Not over dead children. Not over anything.

Trump is not only being played by Netanyahu, although that is certainly happening. He is also a willing accomplice. He parrots Netanyahu’s language. He calls for vengeance. He praises destruction. He treats the war not as a geopolitical crisis but as a stage for his own fantasy of power. He does not want an outcome. He wants applause.

And Congress? Utterly useless. Most members will not call for a ceasefire. They will not question the weapons. They will not demand oversight. They will vote for more bombs while tweeting about peace. They will hide behind platitudes and donor pressure. They will do absolutely nothing.

Some of them went even further. When Netanyahu came to Washington, not for a state visit but for a propaganda tour, a lineup of Democrats lined up to be seen with him. Cory Booker posed for photos. So did Dan Goldman, Ritchie Torres, Haley Stevens, and even Ro Khanna. It was not a meeting. It was a photo op. It was cover. A chance to show loyalty to a man overseeing the mass destruction of Gaza, as if that is what leadership looks like now. Smiles and handshakes while children are being pulled from the rubble. History will not forget those pictures.

And maybe the most disorienting part is this. It is not just the MAGA crowd cheering this on. It is not just the far right twisting scripture and vengeance into one blood-soaked ideology. There are liberal Jews, smart and thoughtful people on the left, who are making the case that Israel’s actions are necessary. That this is what survival looks like. That in a world where antisemitism is rising, the deaths of thousands of Palestinians are somehow part of a just defense. It still shocks me. The willingness to rationalize cruelty, to cling to a national trauma so tightly that nothing else matters. As if entire neighborhoods of children can be wiped out and the moral high ground still belongs to the ones dropping the bombs.

But not everyone is doing nothing.

Dockworkers in Greece refused to load a ship carrying weapons to Israel. Spain and Norway formally recognized a Palestinian state. Civilian ships carrying food are still trying to break through the naval blockade. Protesters across Europe have flooded the streets for months. Other countries are trying, even as the situation becomes nearly impossible. Countries in Europe are recognizing Palestine. Standing up for her. Not us though. Not us.

And Americans? We are eating ice cream this summer. Sailing. Playing baseball. Tennis. We are scrolling through news we barely absorb. We are playing The Sound of Silence on Spotify and telling ourselves it is complicated. That we cannot do anything. That someone else will fix it. The midterms.

But no one is fixing it. Or going to. Gaza is burning. And we are letting it happen.

There is so much blame to go around on this one. I do not even know where to begin. So I will let it begin with me.

Cory Booker and Dan Goldman are getting phone calls from me today. They will take my call. I will demand an explanation.

And maybe that is where we all start. One phone call. One question. One refusal to look away. Find a Palestinian rights group near you. Ask what they need. Show up. Speak up. Begin there.

Take a moment to watch this. This a culture that we are allowing to be destroyed. We can do better.