Our Ever Blest Rachel Corrie

By Geoffrey Cook, TMO

Medford, OR–Your writer is in the great American Pacific Northwest, the State just South of Rachel Corrie’s home State of Washington.  I am revisiting/revising an article of almost a decade ago because of the unjust verdict in the civil case for her wrongful death, whose plaintiffs were her parents, was announced within the last fortnight in Haifa / Israel.  It was a dreadful decision by a nation-State that has become thoroughly rogue.

The judgment was outrageously unjust – blaming the victim for her own murder while denying any guilt to the perpetrators (i.e. murders) of that murderous State!   

In Mid-March nine years ago, Rachel Corrie (1979-2003), who was angelic in appearance and radiating a spiritual commitment of the modern American martyrs such as Martin Luther King. Jr. or a Medgar Evers, was crushed gruesomely by a bulldozer (provided by the U.S. government) most purposefully while she was protecting the home of a poor Palestinian family in the Gazan city of Rafah.

Rachel is a true martyr for our time — both in the Christian and Islamic sense. Through her courage unto death she has done much to bring our two Abrahamic traditions together.  Yet the Israeli military (IDF) shortly after her dispatch announced closure of the file on Rachel’s case by vilely exonerating themselves of any wrong doing without even charging the bulldozer’s driver!

…It has often been remarked how a people who had been so brutally victimized over seventy years ago, have now taken over the psychology of their torturers of the 1930s and 1940s.

…Further, on March 25th 2003 there was a U.S. House Concurrent Resolution 111:

“Expressing sympathy for the loss of Rachel Corrie in the Palestinian village of Rafah in the Gaza Strip on March 16, 2003.

Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That Congress–

(1) Expresses its sympathy to Craig and Cynthia Corrie and to their extended families, friends, and co-workers for the loss of Rachel Corrie in the Palestinian village of Rafah in the Gaza Strip on March 16, 2003;
(2) Calls on the United States Government to undertake a full, fair, and expeditious investigation into the death of Rachel Corrie; and
(3) Encourages the Government of the United States and the Government of Israel to work together to determine all the circumstances that led to this incident and to ensure that an incident of this kind never occurs again.”

This Resolution that had more than forty-two Congressional co-signers which was a demand, to say the least, a comprehensive and independent American and Israeli investigation into the slaughter of Rachel, an American citizen, who had expired under questionable circumstances, and whom the responsible authorities under the international laws of occupation have failed to answer why and how this happened and who is responsible.  To this day only a few weak protests have been made on this matter from Washington.  Within the last two weeks, the Israelis have replied with the end of a staged trial exonerating them of the incident!

Along with Zola in the Deryfus Case, J’accuse Tel Aviv!  J’acusse them of the torturous murder of the innocent Rachel; J’accuse the IDF (Israeli Defense Force) of Crimes of War!  J’accuse the Jewish State of Crimes Against Humanity; J’accuse the Hebrews of the violation against the International Conventions on Occupation! 
…Corrie’s Resolution of 2003 must not languish in the International Relations Committee annuals, but it must lead to further action and resistance!
Like any martyr of any tradition, she represents larger communities under oppression. Corrie chose to come to Gaza to serve the mainly Muslim population although not a Muslim. The International Solidarity Movement (ISM), to which she belonged has come from America and Europe to stand in camaraderie with the Arabs there to bring to the attention of the World the suffering of their Palestinian friends and companions in distress.

…Shortly after,  another member of the ISM, the British citizen Tom Hurndall, was shot in the head by the IDF on April 11th 2003 while endeavoring to distract the Israeli military from slaying a group of Palestinian children. He eventually expired in a London Hospital.

Despite the despicable verdict, let us together recognize the sacrifices of the victims among the communities of Prophets Muhammad (s) and Jesus (as).

14-38