IN STEREO

I’m very lucky that I was born here, just down the mountain in Beit Sahour, [near] the Shepherds Field where the shepherds heard the angels sing and went up to Bethlehem where Jesus was born. In 1988, my village engaged in a revolt which we called the Cow Revolt. Why the Cow Revolt? Because our village bought 18 cows, against a military order that says Palestinian natives cannot own milking cows. We can own milking goats [or] milking sheep, but not milking cows. And the Israeli military discovered this bunch of fugitive cows through an informant and gave us 24 hours to kill the cows, or sell them or something. After some negotiations, they extended it to 48 hours. They came back at the end of 48 hours and the cows were not there. And when they asked, we said, “What cows?” And of course, the Israeli military was furious, and started a military operation. They had to name the military operation, so they called it Operation Hunt Cow.

Literally, to find these fugitive cows that are supplying this terroristic substance to the children of the town, OK? Now, when you think of such stories, in any other context it wouldn’t make sense. But with settler colonialism, it’s logical. When people ask me, “Wait a minute, why does the Israeli army not want you to have cows?” you know what my answer is? “Why would they want us to have cows?” It wouldn’t make sense for them to want us to have cows. Why would the European colonisers want [Native Americans] to have their buffaloes? Why did they kill two million buffaloes? Is it something religious? Is it some anti-buffalo incident? What is it? Logically, of course, they want the land, and they don’t want the people who come with the land. And the buffalo is a source of income for the people. So no buffalo, no people. Then the land is free. This is how colonialists think. It’s logical. – Mazin