Bonuses:

please stop scrolling and take the time to read this.

i don't think people understand the extent of the horror happening in palestine right now. "death" means nothing to people because of desensitisation so let me just tell you what white phosphorus is. it's being used in israeli munitions and has been and will continue to be fired across gaza and the palestinian borders.

white phosphorus burns when it comes into contact with oxygen (at nearly 800°C or 1500°F. the human body can withstand ~50°C for reference.) the air you breathe in ignites and it is near impossible extinguish. it sticks to clothing and skin and is very difficult to remove because it will continue to ignite in air. it burns flesh up to the bone and even past the bone because it penetrates tissue and is absorbed VERY easily. if you inhale it it'll destroy your respiratory tract and lungs. it can cause failure in multiple organs including the liver, kidneys and heart. it is being released in one of the most densely populated places on earth.

the only way to treat someone exposed to white phosphorus is to submerge them in saline or water and to pick out the substance with forceps, and when you undress a wound the substance can re-ignite. this is just ONE weapon that is being used to kill palestinian people right now. palestine does not have access to medical care, humanitarian aid, power, or internet. their hospitals are being bombed. gaza is one of the most densely populated places in the world with over 50% of the population being children. many children are the sole survivors of their families. there are videos of children experiencing panic attacks and symptoms of ptsd. the fact that israel has committed war crimes in plain sight means that we can only imagine what will happen to the palestinians in complete darkness.

israel has and will continue to deny this. your interests and fandom will still be here, you will wake up tomorrow morning and see your friends and family, but an entire nation of people are being wiped off the map. being silent is being complacent. reblog, spread information, tell people in real life, attend protests, sign petitions, call your government offices, at the very least be angry and upset and horrified because once you become numb and indifferent and hopeless the oppressors will have already won.

what's happening right now is more than a genocide and once it becomes a part of history we'll wonder how the world let this happen. genocides have been part of all nations. just because it is far away does not mean you don't have to be concerned. the fact that YOUR governments and YOUR idols and the people around YOU are supporting the mass eradication of an entire group of people should scare you. it shouldn't make you feel anything less than sick and angry and disgusted. DO something about it, no matter how small you feel your voice is, because palestinians no longer have one.

My biggest tip for fanfic writers is this: if you get a character's mannerisms and speech pattern down, you can make them do pretty much whatever you want and it'll feel in character.

Logic: Characters, just like real people, are mallable. There is typically very little that's so truly, heinously out of character that you absolutely cannot make it work under any circumstance. In addition, most fans are also willing to accept characterization stretches if it makes the fic work. Yeah, we all know the villain and the hero wouldn't cuddle for warmth in canon. But if they did do that, how would they do it?

What counts is often not so much 'would the character do this?' and more 'if the character did do this, how would they do it?' If you get 'how' part right, your readers will probably be willing to buy the rest, because it will still feel like their favourite character. But if it doesn't feel like the character anymore, why are they even reading the fic?

Worry less about whether a character would do something, and more about how they'd sound while doing it.

i genuinely hate how people have to sit and write a post that stands out while boosting a fundraiser because most people won't bat an eye at the misery and inhumane conditions Palestinians are living in.

i see people making art and telling others to use it because fundraisers with art are generally reblogged more often. i see people using colored text in order to make the post more eye catching.

palestinians on instagram are using popular audios and stitch trending reels at the beginning to make the world pay attention to them. imagine having to make something look entertaining in order to survive.

they are living under constant threat of israeli airstrikes, bombing, scarcity of food and disease. many have lost a lot in the past few months.

palestinians on tumblr are posting their pictures and the horrible conditions in which they are living. they travel long distances for internet connection only to be called a scammer by some privileged ass who cannot locate gaza on a map.

here are some verified gfms. please share the linked posts. it's the bare minimum we can do from the comforts of our home.

@amjadshiltawu: link to the post

vetted

@dima96yousef: link to the post

vetted

@tamer200333: link to the post

vetted

@ahmed8311: link to the post

vetted (#161)

@saratahrawi: link to the post

vetted

hi serious talk time! not my usual kind of post and it’s going to be a little long, sorry! but i’d appreciate some help with sharing 🙇

recently my very very very close friend tads got kicked out from their home alongside several members of their family, including a teenager.

they have emergency commissions open currently! here’s a really cute animated gif of a character i designed they did for me!!!!! this could be you and ur oc!!!

below i’ll link their kofi alongside their twitter, but i’d like to request just as a personal favor that you tip them extra (or even just send a couple dollars and don’t comm at all) to help lighten their workload.

their slots are also limited so if they’re sold out already, just toss them $5!

i love ‘em a lot and know personally that even drawing a little, esp for an emergency like this, takes a huge toll off your energy and health and i don’t want them more stressed out than they are.

Ko-fi

Buy Tads a Coffee. ko-fi.com/tadsdytads

Become a supporter of Tads today! ❤️ Ko-fi lets you support the creators you love with no fees on donations.

thank you always!! here’s their twitter as well

( their tumblr @tadsdy but they’re not as active here!)

Hello, Please share this post and reblog. Here are the accounts that has been reaching out to me. I am not sure if my post will reach to many people since I am shadowbanned for the second time due to my extensive GFM reblogs/posts. And I am not willing to sacrifice my new account again since I also want to continue as an artist online. So I beg you to please reblog this one and donate if you can!

gofundme.com

Donate to Please help save my family, organized by Abdelmutei Alhabil

I am the citizen Abdel Muti Al-Habil, a resident of Gaza. I am 26 years old. My wife i… Abdelmutei Alhabil needs your support for Please h

gofundme.com

Donate to Support Mohi's Fight for Survival in Gaza, organized by Kalie Ganem

My name is Kalie from Baltimore, MD, and I'm raising money for my friend Mohi fr… Kalie Ganem needs your support for Support Mohi's Fight fo

gofundme.com

Donate to Evacuate Kareem & Carmen NOW from Gaza, organized by Yousef Hussein

Together we can help save Kareem & Carmen. I am Yousef Hussein, from G… Yousef Hussein needs your support for Evacuate Kareem & Ca

gofundme.com

Donate to Get my relatives out of Gaza, organized by Mohammed Darabaih

welcome everybody I am Ghazi Younis, a Palestinian from Gaza. I stayed in the war for … Mohammed Darabaih needs your support for Get my rel

gofundme.com

Donate to Save my children from death, organized by Mahmoud Hilles

Hello, my name is Mahmoud Helles, and I want to tell you about my story. I am a father of f… Mahmoud Hilles needs your support for Save my c

gofundme.com

Donate to Save Gaza: A Brighter Future for Aya and Her Family, organized by Aya Alanqar

A Cry for Help from Gaza My name is Aya, I'm 29 years old. I'm marrie… Aya Alanqar needs your support for Save Gaza: A Brighter Future for

gofundme.com

Donate to Amira's Story: Between Hope and Resilience - A Call for Soli, organized by Abdallah Alanqar

When sorrow and difficulties strike hard, hope becomes the lo… Abdallah Alanqar needs your support for Amira's Story: Between Hope and Resil

gofundme.com

Donate to Help Asmaa to continue school outside of gaza, organized by Erica Montgomery

In the bustling world, amidst the chaos and uncertainties, let me intr… Erica Montgomery needs your support for Help Asmaa to continue scho

Please, please, please share this. Idc if it's going to ruin your aesthetic blog or any other reason. I've destroyed two of my art accounts to help them. Don't make this attempts useless. Please donate if possible, and keep talking about Palestine!

PLEASE DON'T SKIP!

Please consider SHARING or DONATING, thank you! ❤️🍉

Day 258, still alive.🇵🇸🍉

gofundme.com

Donate to Support Ruba's Family's Urgent Evacuation, organized by Ruba Abushaban

Hi everyone, I'm Ruba from Gaza. I'm reaching out to you today with a hea… Ruba Abushaban needs your support for Support Ruba's Family's

How the Watermelon Became a Symbol of Palestinian Solidarity

The use of the watermelon as a Palestinian symbol is not new. It first emerged after the Six-day War in 1967, when Israel seized control of the West Bank and Gaza, and annexed East Jerusalem. At the time, the Israeli government made public displays of the Palestinian flag a criminal offense in Gaza and the West Bank. 

To circumvent the ban, Palestinians began using the watermelon because, when cut open, the fruit bears the national colors of the Palestinian flag—red, black, white, and green.  

The Israeli government didn't just crack down on the flag. Artist Sliman Mansour told The National in 2021 that Israeli officials in 1980 shut down an exhibition at 79 Gallery in Ramallah featuring his work and others, including Nabil Anani and Issam Badrl. “They told us that painting the Palestinian flag was forbidden, but also the colors were forbidden. So Issam said, ‘What if I were to make a flower of red, green, black and white?’, to which the officer replied angrily, ‘It will be confiscated. Even if you paint a watermelon, it will be confiscated,’” Mansour told the outlet.

Israel lifted the ban on the Palestinian flag in 1993, as part of the Oslo Accords, which entailed mutual recognition by Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization and were the first formal agreements to try to resolve the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The flag was accepted as representing the Palestinian Authority, which would administer Gaza and the West Bank.

In the wake of the accords, the New York Times nodded to the role of watermelon as a stand-in symbol during the flag ban. “In the Gaza Strip, where young men were once arrested for carrying sliced watermelons—thus displaying the red, black and green Palestinian colors—soldiers stand by, blasé, as processions march by waving the once-banned flag,” wrote Times journalist John Kifner.

In 2007, just after the Second Intifada, artist Khaled Hourani created The Story of the Watermelon for a book entitled Subjective Atlas of Palestine. In 2013, he isolated one print and named it The Colours of the Palestinian Flag, which has since been seen by people across the globe.

The use of the watermelon as a symbol resurged in 2021, following an Israeli court ruling that Palestinian families based in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem would be evicted from their homes to make way for settlers.

The watermelon symbol today:

In January, Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir gave police the power to confiscate Palestinian flags. This was later followed by a June vote on a bill to ban people from displaying the flag at state-funded institutions, including universities. (The bill passed preliminary approval but the government later collapsed.)

In June, Zazim, an Arab-Israeli community organization, launched a campaign to protest against the ensuing arrests and confiscation of flags. Images of watermelons were plastered on to 16 taxis operating in Tel Aviv, with the accompanying text reading, “This is not a Palestinian flag.”

“Our message to the government is clear: we will always find a way to circumvent any absurd ban and we will not stop fighting for freedom of expression and democracy,” said Zazim director Raluca Ganea. 

Amal Saad, a Palestinian from Haifa who worked on the Zazim campaign, told Al-Jazeera they had a clear message: “If you want to stop us, we’ll find another way to express ourselves.”

Words courtesy of BY ARMANI SYED / TIME

last chance to evacuate

as you may know, israel has begun its ground operation in rafah. they dropped leaflets last night ordering people to evacuate, and bombing in east rafah has already begun.

The border is about to become unreachable.

Rafah is trapped.

We have literal hours until no-one, all the GoFundMe's you've scrolled past, all the people desperately begging on TikTok, will be able to escape.

Give now. Give whatever you can.

I am fundraising for the Odeh family, which is only 3k away from meeting its goal.

you will not get another chance.

GIVE HERE

I want you to imagine yourself, fifty years from now, sitting with your grandchildren. Imagine them asking you “what did you do during the Gazan Genocide?” What will you say? Will you say “I did nothing?” Will you say “I did what I could?” By donating to this fundraiser, you will be able to say “I saved a man from cancer.” I’m sure many of you have seen the fundraiser for @mohiy-gaza2 . What you might not know is that Mohiy himself is very sick. He told me himself that he recently had an MRI to diagnose a tumor in his pancreas, and now needs surgery to remove his spleen. Dealing with these illnesses is difficult enough for those of us lucky enough to live in peaceful countries; in a warzone Mohiy’s task is nothing short of horrific. I know pancreatic cancer is a difficult disease, but with our help, I believe Mohiy can beat it.

I know there are other fundraisers on your dash. I’m sure your bank accounts are already low from the donations you’ve already made. All I can do is beg you, from the bottom of my heart: help Mohiy and his family. I’ve already donated; please find it in your heart to donate whatever you can. To quote Mohiy himself:

gofundme.com

Donate to Support Mohi's Fight for Survival in Gaza, organized by Kalie Ganem

My name is Kalie from Baltimore, MD, and I'm raising money for my friend Mohi fr… Kalie Ganem needs your support for Support Mohi's Fight fo

Thank you for reading this. I know Mohiy and his family are grateful for anything you can give.