How to Get Fired 🇵🇸
How to Get Fired
Algolia is a French software startup of 700+ people where Khalid worked for a year
and a half.
Khalid spent 3 months advocating for Algolia to take a moral stance condemning the genocide of Gaza. The company
repeatedly refused.
On January 24, 2024, Khalid took matters into his own hands and sent an email to everyone at his company.
The next day, January 25, Khalid was fired.
Algolia offered to buy Khalid's silence by paying for 6-months of his
healthcare, provided that Khalid sign a contract vowing never to speak about the firing (or even the contract
itself). Khalid declined the offer.
Compare Algolia's cold and active silencing of Gaza to Algolia's loud and adamant support of Ukraine:
Why stand so strongly with Ukraine, and then ignore the suffering of Palestinians facing extermination and genocide?
Why fire those who bring attention to the hypocrisy and racist double standard of this messaging?
Why is creating "broad awareness" a priority when Ukrainians suffer but a problem when Palestinians are victimized?
Ultimately, corporate culture itself has become a medium through which empire disseminates propaganda, enforces
groupthink, and (in this case) manufactures consent for genocide.
Don't like it? You don't get paid to like it. Now
get back to work!
Learn more about this incident and about the history of this website by listening to Khalid's 94-minute interview
with Abby Martin of the Empire
Files:
Read the email that Khalid sent below, or watch a recital of the email on YouTube.
Is my Arab blood so cheap?
Is the price of truth so steep?
That I must not speak for equality and liberty?
That I must tolerate genocide to earn my salary?
12,660
Gazan kids KILLED in 104 days,
Compared to approximately 500 kids in TWO YEARS in Ukraine.
An average of 121 children will be killed TODAY,
by Israel's war crimes, deaths on digital display.
It was directly in our product,
where we declared our support for Ukraine,
but I am threatened with termination,
for representing Palestinian pain?
Our cancerous empire perpetuates violence,
by fostering corporate culture that mandates our silence,
and diffuses responsibility across numerous organizations,
to build an armed consortium that exploits third-world nations.
I've heard all the lip service,
and read all the brochures,
about how important diversity is,
and how inclusion's the cure.
The truth is quite simple: you don't really care.
Diversity quotas only matter for hiring,
When an anti-apartheid Arab perspective gets shared...
Quick! HR! We had better get firing!
This is not out of the blue,
This is honest and true,
Raytheon Missiles and Defense,
Does diversity & inclusion, too.
“That's so not fair,
we really do CARE!
It's in our core values,
see, right there!”
I would LOVE to see Algolia CARE,
About starving Gazan children
drinking tears, eating air.
I asked Bernie [CEO] to send an email denouncing GENOCIDE,
or AT THE LEAST to ACKNOWLEDGE how MANY of us DIED.
I speak in OUTRAGE against Palestinian suffering and strife,
I speak AGAINST Israel's crimes and FOR the sanctity of all life,
I speak to HONOR every martyr of Israeli aggression,
I speak to DEMAND a swift end to this decades-long oppression.
Our employer will not look our torment in the eye,
The controversy is too risky, better just leave us to die.
Your decision is not as rude as a statement of hate,
Yet you betray the drowning like a lifeguard who has chosen to wait.
And so I can't breathe while I earn, here, my dollar,
And I wish that this pressure on my neck would just loose.
This job that I am working, you call it "white-collar,"
But with your response to my words, it feels like a noose.
I've attached all communications, [but did not upload them to this website for legal
reasons]
I invite you to read for yourself.
Judge freely my actions,
Am I entitled? Am I unwell?
To those who would say that I anti-semitize,
For witnessing Israel's crimes and daring to criticize:
My first language was Arabic. I am as Semitic as it gets,
but it is not just us Arabs marching in these protests!
I march shoulder-to-shoulder with my brothers and sisters, the Jews,
Jewish elders meet me and thank me for the protest work that I do,
My most beloved mentor in this stage of my life,
is my jiujitsu instructor, a Jewish man, who says “Free Palestine!”
On the 8th night of Hanukkah,
I stood up and cut my supper short.
I ran down to University Bridge,
where
the Jewish Voice for Peace was holding court.
It was much more filling to sing,
With these Jewish family members of mine,
Brothers and sisters of humanity,
Than to stay home and dine.
In this political climate where humanitarian advocacy is a perilous game,
It is the work of Jewish journalists and activists that helped me stand on my feet.
When the Jewish masses reject Israel's genocide: “NOT IN OUR NAME,”
How can you NOT join them as they march through the street?
So deal consequence to my actions and explain away my words,
Restore a tremulous order over us laboring herds.
It takes all of my courage to commit to this leap,
But what choice do I have as long as Arab blood runs so cheap?
The rest of my message is focused on Israel,
And how they fulfill their vision of turning Gaza into
hell,
There are thousands more crimes that I've certainly missed,
My goal here is, at least, to deliver a glimpse.
From the river to the sea,
Palestine will be FREE!
From the sea to the river,
Palestine will live FOREVER!
Resources:
- Websites
- israelquotes.com
- My personal project, a bibliography of 450+ quotes, with direct links to sources, of Israeli
(and a few American) leaders, military, and civilians, expressing everything from genocidal
intent to Israeli fratricide on October 7th.
- techforpalestine.org
- "A loose coalition of 2000+ founders, engineers, product marketers, community builders,
investors, and other tech folks working towards Palestinian freedom. We aim to end the
dehumanisation of Palestinians within the tech community, and to bring voice to those who
speak up."
- oct7factcheck.com
- "Our mission is to facilitate an accurate understanding of the events of October 7 and its
aftermath through the collection and organization of information. We value accuracy and
organization. We recognize there may be errors but we reach a high level of confidence
before issuing any conclusions. If you find additional information, mistakes or
inaccuracies, please contact us so we can correct or augment this work. Due to the nature of
this work, there are at times disturbing imagery, video, or descriptions. Viewer discretion
is advised."
- instagram.com/israelscrimes
- "A social media documentation of Zionist abuses and violations. Sources provided. This
page stands against hatred of all forms. Est. 11/25/23"
- breakingthesilence.org.il
- "Breaking the Silence is an organization of veteran soldiers who have served in the Israeli
military since the start of the Second Intifada and have taken it upon themselves to expose
the public to the reality of everyday life in the Occupied Territories. We endeavor to
stimulate public debate about the price paid for a reality in which young soldiers face a
civilian population on a daily basis, and are engaged in the control of that population’s
everyday life. Our work aims to bring an end to the occupation."
- euromedmonitor.org
- In their latest
publication
which spans the dates October 7 - January 19, this Geneva-based non-profit shares the latest
numbers:
- 29,720 civilians killed by Israel in Gaza since October 7.
- 12,660 children killed by Israel in Gaza since October 7.
- 6,860 women killed by Israel in Gaza since October 7.
- 301 healthcare professionals killed by Israel in Gaza since October 7.
- 115 journalists killed by Israel in Gaza since October 7.
- Every number is a treasured life. A face, a soul, a set of hopes and dreams and fears and
ambitions. How many gallons of blood have been spilled so far? Can you do the math?
- shutitdown4palestine.org
- "We must keep building momentum and increase the pressure with more marches, walk-
outs, sit-ins, and other forms of direct action directed at the political offices,
businesses, and workplaces that fund, invest, and collaborate with Israeli genocide and
occupation."
-
Specific Crimes to Highlight
- December 16, 2023 - The sniping and murder, by Israel, of Nahida and Samar Anton, two
Christian Palestinian women taking refuge inside the Holy Family Parish in Gaza.
- October 19, 2023 - The bombing, by Israel, of the 3rd oldest church in the world, the Church
of St. Porphyrius.
- September 28, 2018 - The sniping and murder, by Israel, of an 11-year-old Palestinian
child Nasser Mosabeh during a peaceful protest,
the Great March of Return.
- As written about in a Human
Rights Council report, paragraph 517, page 148: "On 28
September at approximately 5 p.m., the ISF shot 11-year-old Nasser Mosabeh in the back of
the head with live ammunition at the demonstration site in Khan Younis. Nasser was
transferred to the Gaza European Hospital where he was declared dead. On that day, Nasser
had been helping his two volunteer paramedic sisters treating injured people at the protest
site towards Jakkar Road. He would bring saline water bottles to paramedics and would keep
his distance to 150 m from the fence. Protestors burned tyres approximately 70-100 m from
the fence impairing visibility for the ISF soldiers. When the victim was shot, he was under
a tree, 250 m from the fence near Jakkar Road. ISF soldiers fired two gunshots and the child
was found lying on the ground seconds after the gunshots were heard. Nasser was lying three
meters away from another injured man. The bullet entered the right side of his head behind
his ear and parts of his skull and brain were found close to his body. The Commission
analysed video and photographic footage showing Nasser's injury at the back left side of his
head as he was surrounded by paramedics attempting resuscitation. The Commission finds that
Nasser did not pose an imminent threat of death or serious injury to ISF soldiers when he
was shot."
- October 7, 2023 - The killing, by Israel, of a 12-year-old Israeli children Liel Hetzroni and
her twin brother Yanai in the Israeli counter-attack on kibbutz Be'eri, as recounted by October 7
survivor Yasmin Porat.
- As recounted by Yasmin Porat on October
15, 2023 to Israeli State Radio.
- As recounted again by Yasmin Porat on
November 15, 2023 to Kan News
Radio.
- Although Israel killed Liel Hetzroni, and although the truth came out during Yasmin Porat's
testimonies, the State of Israel's official Twitter account did not hesitate to blame her
death on Hamas and to use her death to transform her into a poster-child for the October 7
attacks. See this twitter
post from November 24, 2023.
- October 7, 2023 - The killing, by Israel, of 19 people (8 children) in the Israeli counter-
attack on kibbutz Kfar Aza.
- As recounted
by Golan Vach, Lieutenant Colonel of the IDF, in an interview
with the press,
where he first blames the deaths on Hamas then admits that it was Israeli tanks that
caused the destruction of the kibbutz home from which nobody survived.
- October 7, 2023 - The shooting, by Israel, of a tank-mounted .50 caliber machine gun at
houses in kibbutz Holit without proper identification of its occupants.
- October 7, 2023 - The destruction and killing, by Israel, of a large number of fleeing
unidentified vehicles and persons on foot.
- As documented
by Jewish journalist Max Blumenthal, direct quotes from Apache attack
helicopter pilots and commanders to Israel's Mako news outlet: "I understand that we have to
shoot here and quickly" "Shooting at people in our territory - this is something I never
thought I would do." "I find myself in a dilemma as to what to shoot at, because there are
so many of them."
- As reported by the Israeli outlet
Yedioth Aharanoth: "the pilots realized that there was tremendous difficulty in
distinguishing within the occupied outposts and settlements who was a terrorist and who was
a soldier or civilian... The rate of fire against the thousands of terrorists was tremendous
at first, and only at a certain point did the pilots begin to slow down the attacks and
carefully select the targets."
- October 7, 2023 - The bombing, by Israel, of Israeli houses and people within Israel.
- 2014 - The destruction, by Israel, of a neighborhood in Gaza in 2014, to “provoke” a violent
response which never came, as recounted by an Israeli tank gunner. [Breaking the Silence:
'This is How We Fought in Gaza' Soldiers' testimonies and photographs from Operation 'Protective
Edge' (2014), testimony #46, page 113]
- October 7, 2023 - The intentional manufacture, by Israel, of a humanitarian crisis in Gaza by
means of imposing a siege, destroying healthcare infrastructure, killing healthcare workers, and
creating conditions for epidemics, a direct admission of biological warfare tactics.
- December 15, 2023 - The shooting and killing, by Israel, of three unarmed, shirtless, white-
flag waving Israeli hostages in Gaza.
-
Martin Luther King Jr. & Nelson Mandela
- Read Martin Luther
King Jr.'s letter from Birmingham jail
- Some key quotes
- "We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and
actions of
the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people"
- "Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. The yearning for freedom
eventually manifests itself, and that is what has happened to the American Negro.
Something within has reminded him of his birthright of freedom, and something
without has reminded him that it can be gained."
- "You warmly commended the Birmingham police force for keeping 'order' and
'preventing violence.' I doubt that you would have so warmly commended the police
force if you had seen its dogs sinking their teeth into unarmed, nonviolent Negroes.
I doubt that you would so quickly commend the policemen if you were to observe their
ugly and inhumane treatment of Negroes here in the city jail; if you were to watch
them push and curse old Negro women and young Negro girls; if you were to see them
slap and kick old Negro men and young boys; if you were to observe them, as they did
on two occasions, refuse to give us food because we wanted to sing our grace
together. I cannot join you in your praise of the Birmingham police department."
- "If I have said anything in this letter that overstates the truth and indicates an
unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me. If I have said anything that
understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allows me to settle
for anything less than brotherhood, I beg God to forgive me."
-
One quote from MLK Jr.'s book Strength to Love, 1963
- "The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and
convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."
-
Nelson Mandela, anti-apartheid activist and civil rights icon, was considered a terrorist by
the U.S.A. until 2008.
-
Violence against Palestinians in the U.S.A.
-
It is no doubt that anti-semitism has increased worldwide since the October 7 attacks. This
is deplorable and detestable. Hatred is never appropriate. However, the U.S.A. is focused solely on
having congressional
hearings about anti-semitism against Jews and is completely ignoring hate against
Palestinians. Media coverage has become weaponized against Palestinians, and this asymmetrical
coverage
is providing cover for violence against Palestinians. Consider this list of violence against
Palestinians on U.S. soil since October 7 and ask yourself how might the media coverage might be
different if the victims were Jewish:
-
October 14, 2023 - In Chicago, a 6-year-old boy Palestinian boy was stabbed 26 times
and died. His mother was stabbed more than a dozen times and survived.
-
November 25, 2023 - In Vermont, three 20-year-old Palestinian college students were
shot multiple times. All three survived, but one was injured in the spine and is paralyzed.
-
December 1, 2023 - In Atlanta, a protestor attempted self-immolation outside the
Israeli
consulate.
- As reported
by Reuters.
- This is obviously self-inflicted violence, so it doesn't quite fit this category,
but I
maintain that it would have received far more media coverage if the
victim/perpetrator
was Jewish.
-
January 19, 2023 - In New York City, during a protest at Columbia University, a
chemical
weapon, "Skunk spray" was used against more than a dozen protestors by disguised
perpetrators.
-
Media to Watch, Listen, and Read
-
Watch:
- Gaza Fights for Freedom (2019) -
Free on Youtube. Director: Abby Martin, from the Empire Files.
- Chronicles what life was like in Gaza in 2018 and shows how Israel responded to non-
violent protestors during the Great March of Return with illegal exploding sniper
ammunition and lethal tear gas.
- CONTENT WARNING: You will see people get shot and wounded/killed.
- Tantura (2022) - Stream on Prime Video.
Director: Alon Schwarz.
- Chronicles the Tantura massacre that took place during the Nakba of 1948. Explores
the Nakba, Israel's founding mythos, and the taboo of the word in Israeli society
today. Filled with amazing interviews with veterans of the Alexandroni Brigade, the
perpetrators of the Tantura massacre.
- The Lab (2013) - Free on Youtube.
Director: Yotam Feldman.
- Explores the Israeli arms industry and documents how weapons manufacturers
"field-test" weapons against children in Gaza and then sell those weapons (and
training) to
governments and militaries all around the world.
- Israelism (2023) - Hosting
screenings everywhere. Was $5 to stream online, not sure how
to stream now. Directors: Erin Axelman & Sam Eilertzen
- "When two young American Jews raised to unconditionally love Israel witness the
brutal
way Israel treats Palestinians, their lives take sharp left turns. They join a
movement of young American Jews battling the old guard to redefine Judaism's
relationship with Israel, revealing a deepening generational divide over modern
Jewish identity."
- My Jewish jiujitsu instructor told me this movie made him feel seen. I found it
really interesting and it taught me a lot about American Jewish culture and stigma.
-
Listen:
- The Martyr Made Podcast - A very rich deep dive
into the history of the conflict, reaching way back into the
earliest Jewish history, chronicling the pogroms that Jews have had to endure, exploring the
foundation of Zionism, the history of the Middle East post-WWI, the violent founding of
Israel, and continues on to today.
- I haven't listened to this all yet, but so far, I find it to be an amazing history.
-
Read:
- GAZA -
Dr. Norman Finkelstein
- This text is pure gold. Remarkably well researched, every page's footnotes brimming
with some of the most useful and shocking citations. If you really want to learn
the ins and outs behind Israeli crimes and oppression in Gaza over the years,
this book is a MUST READ.
- I ACCUSE -
Dr. Norman Finkelstein
- "This finely-honed indictment by a writer widely acknowledged for his forensic
skills is
directed at Fatou Bensouda, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal
Court. It sets out how she defiled her office by refusing to investigate credible
allegations of Israeli criminality. On 31 May 2010, Israeli forces attacked a
humanitarian flotilla bound for Gaza. By the end of the action, nine passengers on
the flotilla's flagship, the Mavi Marmara, were dead (a tenth passenger died later
from his injuries). Scores of others were injured, and hundreds more endured torture
and inhuman treatment. The Union of the Comoros, where the Mavi Marmara was
registered, referred the Israeli attack to the ICC. The Chief Prosecutor ruled that
the incident was not of sufficient gravity to warrant an official investigation.
Bensouda could only reach this conclusion by grossly misrepresenting the facts of
the case and removing the assault from its context—the illegal Israeli blockade and
the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. Though she declared the case closed, an
unprecedented pushback from within the ICC has forced the Chief Prosecutor to
revisit it. The challenge now posed by this volume comes down to this: If justice is
to prevail, ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda must either investigate alleged
Israeli crimes or resign."
- Jewish Journalists and Activists
- Understand that, despite its claims, Israel does not represent all Jews, and that some of
the best work being done to expose Israel's crimes is being done by Jews. These are just
some of the Jewish people doing amazing work in the field:
- Dr. Norman Finkelstein - Son of
Holocaust survivors, his father survived Auschwitz, his
mother survived Maijdenek, Princeton PhD in political studies, 40-year expert in the
conflict
- Dr. Gabor Maté - Holocaust survivor, former
Zionist, physician, trauma
psychologist,
author and speaker
- Aaron Maté - Journalist at the Grayzone, host of the podcast Pushback
with Aaron Maté, co-host of the Useful
Idiots Podcast with Katie Halper.
- Katie Halper - host of the Useful
Idiots Podcast
- Max
Blumenthal - Editor-in-chief at the Grayzone
- Dan Cohen - Founder of Uncaptured Media
Thank you so much for reading!
I assert my humanity.
Free Palestine!
-Khalid E.
![[!! MUST READ !!] Algolia's message in support of Ukraine](/pub/algoliaukrainemessage.png){kind=link}
