My name is Gemma and I’m a 23 year old from Naarm/melbourne in the colony of so-called Australia. I was a first year melbourne university student when the post-Oct 7th 2023 genocide commenced. I learnt more and more about Palestine while being part of the UniMelb4Palestine encampment and occupation where we successfully forced our university to disclose (but sadly not divest from) research ties with weapons manufacturers. It was during this time that I was confronted with the parallels between the ethnic-cleansing in Palestine and that of so called “australia”. First Nations people of so called “australia” are the most incarcerated people on the planet. Black Deaths in Custody are at an all time high in this colony, with over 630 deaths recorded since the Royal Commission in 1991. It is hard to ignore the parallels between “israel” and “australia”, who both use incarceration as a mechanism of genocide. I recognise that the fight of Indigenous peoples is interconnected, from my home continent to the nation of Palestine I am travelling to, and the many many more. No one is free until all of us are free, and it is with this in my mind I continue to confront the genocidal zionist entity.
