Ta-Nehisi Coates speaks out against apartheid Israel
As Israel expands its attacks on Lebanon, acclaimed writer Ta-Nehisi Coates speaks out. His new book, The Message, is partly inspired by his visit last year to Israel and the occupied West Bank, where he observed a system of segregation and oppression reminiscent of Jim Crow in the United States. “It was revelatory,” Coates states. “I don’t think the average American has a real sense of what we’re doing over there — and I emphasize 'what we're doing' because it’s not possible without American support.”Coates raises a crucial point about whose voices are heard in American media. He repeatedly asks if any major network in the United States has a Palestinian American bureau chief or correspondent who can fully articulate their community's experiences. As a reporter for 20 years, he notes that those who support Israel's right to exist often have no trouble getting their perspectives aired. But the stories of Palestinians — from the West Bank, Haifa, and the South Hebron Hills — are often left untold.
Coates is not against tough interviews, but he wants to see a balance — where Palestinian voices and those critical of Israeli policies are given a platform to challenge the status quo. He emphasizes that this issue goes beyond him or the CBS interview; it’s about the people who remain invisible in media narratives. Coates envisions a world where a Palestinian American journalist could appear on a mainstream show like CBS This Morning and ask similarly tough questions of those defending Israel’s actions.
In The Message, Coates underscores the importance of the stories we choose to tell and, perhaps most crucially, who gets to tell them. It’s not just about what’s included in the conversation but also about who remains excluded. For Coates, it’s vital to remember the voices that aren’t given a chance to speak, particularly those of Palestinians and Palestinian Americans who continue to be marginalized in the media.
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