Very well stated. I very much mean that.
Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPad On Wednesday, December 11, 2024, 11:00 AM, Dennis Brasky via groups.io <[email protected]> wrote: While most Syrians and their supporters understandablycelebrated the downfall of their notorious despot, some self-styled Western“anti-imperialists” — including voices within the pro-Palestinian movement —adopted a more muted stance. It feels perverse to see Syrians forced into defensivepositions on the day they are freed from half a century of tyranny. Why mustSyria’s liberation from a notorious regime that spent decades destroying thefabric of its society — hollowing out its people, resources, land andopportunities — be met with hesitation, muted celebrations or warnings to“watch with caution”? Why can’t it simply be recognized for what it is: avictory for human liberation? There is growing dismay at those critiquing Assad’soverthrow for showing little regard for the sincere desire for freedom of Arabsand relegating their national aspirations to mere chess moves on a geopoliticalboard. Ironically, these oracles of doom are nearly always railingagainst the paternalistic patronising of Western orientalists of global southcountries, and yet here they are telling Syrians they don’t know what’s goodfor them. As estimations emerge that up to 100,000 Syrians disappeared intoAssad’s prison cells, the majority killed, do the naysayers really expect us tobe thinking of “worse to come” without the regime? It is beyond demeaning. Some also lament Assad’s demise for the almost laughableclaim that he was an anti-imperialist fighter, a deterrent to Israel and afriend of Palestine. These claims are absurd when weighed against the regime’sreality. Its survival depended entirely on direct foreign intervention byRussia and Iran. While they may not fly the stars and stripes, imperialismcomes in many flags. As for deterring Israel, the obvious question is: withwhat? Any study of revolutionary history shows that beginningsare often bumpy and the future uncertain. Yet, by most comparisons, HTS’souster of Assad and takeover of Syria have been remarkably bloodless andsmooth. Still, there remains the patronizing, infantilizing finger-wagging andcautioning. Even more troubling is the risk of suppressing our griefover the staggering loss of Syrian lives during the grotesque reign of theAssad dynasty. Will Syrians now be compelled to intellectualize and justifytheir relief at escaping their abuser instead of beginning the long process ofhealing? This is about generations of work — processing trauma, recovering,rebuilding — and Syrians need support to undertake it, not shame for embracingtheir freedom. https://newlinesmag.com/argument/liberation-in-syria-is-a-victory-worth-embracing/ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#34005): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/34005 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/110067352/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/13617172/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
