The genocide in Gaza stripped away the façade of Israel as the most moral army in the world.
Image: IAN LANDSBERG
Arthur Miller’s famous play, The Crucible, which is based on the Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts, displays striking parallels to the events that are taking place in the world today.
Salem, which was a strictly puritan, theocratic society, is gripped by a madness when members of the town are accused of witchcraft. The play is based on actual historical events. The title, The Crucible, functions as a metaphor that reflects the themes and conflicts in the play. The people of Salem undergo a severe trial as they attempt to withstand the mass hysteria that sees their friends and family accused of witchcraft, with many being hanged without any factual evidence.
A crucible is a vessel that contains substances while resisting intense heat. The heavy metals undergo a process of purification or transformation. In the Crucible, the true nature of people is revealed and religion is misappropriated and distorts justice.
Although the Salem Witch Trials should be regarded as a moment in history that should never be revisited, it appears that history is circular.
The parallels are obvious; in Israel, we see the justification of religion to commit genocide and grab land. Palestinian prisoners are held in Israeli prisons for years without due process taking place. We witness abuse of power by those who call themselves peacemakers, but who begin wars with sovereign countries just because these countries threaten their own belief systems. We see mass hysteria created by unfounded propaganda that demonises Muslims and other minority groups-framing us as wicked, fanatical or heretics. Those who are clearly on the side of evil, claim to be good and moral (Epstein’s friends).
Just as the people of Salem lived under a repressive theocratic rule, which created a pressure cooker environment, so too are the citizens of the world. The war in Iran has begun to create ripples of distress across the globe. These ripples will become waves that will eventually engulf innocent people who have no part in it.
The occupation of Palestine was the catalyst. Over 78 years of oppression, apartheid and violence have led to this exact moment in time and the war in Iran clearly demonstrates how violence and oppression do not vaporise, rather, their effects accumulate- just as a crucible builds heat in stages.
Finally, things must come to a climax- and it appears the climax is nearing. The final stage in heating metals is purification- the separation of the pure from the impure- good from evil.
The genocide in Gaza stripped away the façade of Israel as the most moral army in the world. The war in Iran has stripped away the illusion that the United States is the most invincible nation on earth.
As the war continues, these differences will only become more obvious. It is time that people began to open their eyes and stand on the right side of history or else they will surely be the losers.