Political Memes

I'm just one data point, but certainly I have seen a shift in both the overall coverage, but also my own awareness. For perspective, I'm a grad student in the UK, and very left wing. You're right that people have been trying to raise awareness of, and condemning Israel's actions for decades, and that's why I feel shame that my voice wasn't part of that until recently.

My awareness was limited to what coverage I saw in mainstream news, which was mostly "there's conflict in the middle east, because that part of the world is general spicy. Hamas are shooting rockets, they're terrorists". I'm deeply cynical of mainstream news, so had I been actively watching this, I'd have probably questioned what was being presented and found the truth out sooner, but I ignored what was happening because it appeared too complex and I was scared of saying something "wrong." Basically, I felt out of my depth and instead of going and learning more to amend that, I ended up ambiently absorbing propaganda that made me ignore the plight of the Palestinian people.

I'm writing this because like I say, I do feel ashamed, but I think shame can be a good human emotion, in moderation. If anyone like me is reading this, I'd urge you to look into whatever local activism is taking place near you, and seeing if there's anything you can go to. I "abstained" for so long because understanding a conflict on the other side of the world from me felt difficult, and it felt like staying out of things was wise and correct, because what difference could I make, anyway? However, I've realised (and I'm realising more each day) that there wouldn't be such a strong response to the protesters if what they were doing didn't matter. To people like me, who have regrettably had their head in the sand for much too long, it certainly does feel like the tides are shifting.