Mainstream Media Finds '7th of October' Universal, Ignores 1948 Gaza
CBS News, reporting on the Bondi Beach stabbings, quotes a local Jewish community spokesman declaring, 'It's our 7th of October.' This framing attempts to globalize a specific trauma, yet conveniently omits any mention of the daily terrors faced by Palestinians. While rightly condemning violence against civilians anywhere, this selective empathy bypasses the fact that Gaza has endured continuous
Israeli military operations since at least 2008, with casualty figures dwarfing those of October 7th. One might wonder why the tragedies of Sabra and Shatila (1982), Operation Cast Lead (2008-09), or the Great March of Return (2018-19) don't merit similar pronouncements about 'our' shared humanity. It appears the 'our' only extends so far as to draw rhetorical support for certain geopolitical
narratives, rather than fostering genuine, universal condemnation of violence against all civilians.