Isa: Aaahhh… Why Did I Eat So Much?

Jake: The first time I ever got upset in front of Isa, she put her arms around me and it was so awkward that I had to ask her if she was hugging me or reaching for something on the shelf behind me.

Isa: I was doing both, for your information.

Kai: The first time Isa hugged me, it was such a disaster we didn’t make eye contact for, like, a week after.

Jake: *accidentally eats something too spicy so his eyes start to water*

Isa: Jake, look at me. It's okay. I would die for you. I love you so much. You're the best person I know.

Jake: I'm not crying?

Isa, hugging Jake’s head: Shush baby, it's okay. Kai is here and he loves you with his whole heart.

I was punched and pepper sprayed by cops that my university administration set on student protesters yesterday. Including once where a cop ripped my mask off my face, grabbed my jaw, and sprayed pepper sprayed straight into my mouth. The university sent out an alert in the middle of our protest canceling classes for the rest of the day, only citing “adverse conditions”. After protesters dispersed under threat of even more violence and three buses of riot police from all over the state with rubber bullets and bully sticks parked in front of one our school’s famous landmarks. I staggered over to a couple of friends who were watching on the sidelines. They gave me water and an apple and held a bag of ice on my very pepper spray irritated face. As they were walking me back to my dorm we ran into one of their roommates. She had taken cancelled classes as an opportunity to get crumbl cookie with her friends. Standing in front of her, happy in a floral blouse with her box of cookies, in my pepper spray and water soaked tshirt, keffiyeh sadly hanging off my shoulder, holding an ice pack to my mouth, felt like a slap in the face.

After putting my pepper spray soaked clothes, shoes, and keffiyeh in a plastic bag and taking an extraordinarily painful shower, a friend and I went for dinner just off campus. There we had a pot of green tea and ramen to soothe pepper sprayed throats. We got ice cream after (shared a cup with chocolate and raspberry pomegranate with strawberry pieces on top, it was very good). From our spot outside the ice cream place we watched a steady stream of groups of sorority girls in matching jeans shorts and blue bikini tops walking back to their apartments after some apparently raucous parties. The cognitive dissonance was insane. I really felt a little like I was going crazy.

Even this morning, waking up to the smeared sharpie of the National Lawyer’s Guild’s phone number on my arm, a black and blue chest from where a grown man straight up clocked me while I was held up by two other protesters in a wall, and a still sore throat and eyes from the pepper spray, life goes on like normal. I still have final papers to write and a math exam to review for.

I’m not sure I really have a point. But, this feeling only makes me want to fight harder for a free Palestine. So, fuck Israel for being an apartheid state and all of their crimes over the last 76 years. Fuck university administration for not disclosing their level of investment in Israel. Fuck university administration for not divesting from this genocide. Fuck Joe Biden for actively supporting this genocide. And fuck the police.

Hey stayblr, I've been thinking of ways we can unite to help Palestine in the current genocide. With Israel closing borders again, no aid is allowed in and local organizations on the ground urgently need our help. So, i thought of rallying to raise donations for Palestine, big or small, as every dollar counts and can truly make a difference. Our initial target is to raise 1500 dollars, to be split between Care for Gaza and UNRWA. We’ll raise the target goal according to our progress!

For transparency, donations will be received through my Kofi, with daily updates on our progress. Here are the links to UNRWA’s and Careforgaza’s work in Gaza!

Palestinians are saying that this is the worst phase of the genocide yet. They need as much of our help as we can give them, so please, let’s all stand together for this.

If you cannot donate

- please reblog and share around!

- stream hind’s hall (all proceeds will be donated to unrwa!

Isa, opening a Capri Sun: Guess I'll drink my sorrows away.

Isa: You're a horrible roommate and nobody in this house likes you. Kai: Let's rephrase our statements with 'If you do this, it makes me feel this'. Try it, Isa. Isa: When you live here, it makes me feel angry. Kai: Isa: Because you're a horrible roommate and nobody in this house likes you.

Random Bird: Caw-Caw! Isa:Caw-Caw to you too, bitch!

Dec. 1, 2015 | Gaza City, Palestine

Palestinian schoolgirls walk in front of a rainbow illuminating the sky over Gaza City’s shore.