Bread Not Bombs
Christer Themptander
Offset, 1986
Stockholm, SE
26936
CSPG’s Poster of the Week features Christer Themtander’s 1986 poster, which perfectly encompasses the message we should be sending to the world, and Gaza. Bread Not Bombs!
On February 29th, more than 100 Palestinians were killed and over 700 others were wounded after Israeli troops opened fire on hundreds of people awaiting much-needed food in Gaza. After the initial rounds of gunfire had paused, people pulled boxes of flour and canned goods off trucks only to be met by gunfire once more. Israeli soldiers returned with tanks and trucks, rolling over and crushing wounded people who were unable to seek safety.
It is hard to believe that this incident, nicknamed the Flour Massacre, was anything other than an intentional ambush. Israel had initially pinned the blame on the crowd, claiming that dozens were hurt due to a stampede that broke out when aid trucks arrived, later they claimed that the crowd posed a threat to Israelis in tanks, so soldiers responded by opening fire. The reality is that desperate and starving Palestinians gathered in large numbers with the hopes of receiving flour and food for their families but were met with snipers, tanks, and warplanes.
Over the weekend, the U.S. Air Force airdropped the equivalent to 38,000 meals along the Gaza coastline. This has done little to relieve the risk of famine to the nearly 2 million people living in Gaza, a quarter of whom are at imminent risk of starvation. The deadly irony is that the United States is actively funding the Israeli government and military with money to support the ongoing massacre of Palestinians while simultaneously providing critical aid to the people they are keeping isolated. Biden himself said that this amount of food is wholly insufficient, equivalent to 4-6 truckloads of food, a measly sliver of the 96 trucks per day needed to sustain those living in Gaza.
No one should be forced to buy food at exorbitant prices, or risk their lives at aid trucks or airdrops, just to feed their starving children. As Mohamad Safa said on X, the site formerly known as Twitter, said “No child should look to the sky and wonder if what's falling is death or dinner.” CSPG’s Poster of the Week features Christer Themptander which perfectly encompasses the message we should be sending to the world, and Gaza. Bread–Not Bombs!
This man-made famine was predicted by many human rights watchers as far back as December. That reality is here. The death toll has already surpassed 30,000 since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October and many more are at risk of starvation. We must not stay silent about the atrocities being committed. We must continue to urge our lawmakers, the Biden administration, and the UN to demand a permanent ceasefire from Israel and end the senseless destruction, killing, and starvation of people in Gaza.
The best way to honor International Women’s Day:
Immediate Cease Fire!
Release the Hostages!
Ways to Help:
Sources: