By Samah Sabwai

To the people of Israel who fear our freedom:  Don’t be afraid, we will liberate you too.
 
This is my rendition
Of an anthem to be sung
That day you and I
Will stand side by side
Shoulder to shoulder
Watching a new dawn
Wipe away
Decades of hate and savagery
The day I rise
From the ashes of your oppression
I promise you I will not rise alone
You too will rise with me
You will be liberated
From your own tyranny
And my freedom
Will bring your salvation
 
This is my rendition
Of an anthem to be sung
I’ll craft new words of expression
Outside of this suffocating language
That has occupied me
Your words,
Are like your walls
They encroach on my humanity
I am more than demography
I’m neither your collaborator
Nor your enemy
I am not your moderate
Not your terrorist
Not your fundamentalist
Islamist
Extremist
Militant
Radical
I am more than adjectives
Letters and syllables
I will construct my own language
And replace your words of power
With the power of my words
 
This is my rendition
Of an anthem to be sung
I don’t want to obliterate
Nor humiliate you
I refuse to hate you
Don’t care to demonize
Or Proselytize
Or theorize
Your intentions
Every breath you draw
Reminds me you are human
The sound of your beating heart
Is a rhythm familiar to my ears
You and I are no different
We are made of blood and tears
 
This is my rendition
Of an anthem to be be sung
I will resist and soar
Above your matrix of control
With the power of my will
Your wall will fall
And the concrete that once segregated us
Will be used to rebuild homes
Your bulldozers and your tanks
Will dissolve into the earth
The sap will return to the olive trees
The gates will open wide for the refugees
We will be free
I will be your equal
And only then
You will be mine
My other self
My fellow human being
 
– Samah Sabawi is a writer from Gaza currently living in Australia. She contributed this article to PalestineChronicle.com.