This year, the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, November 29th, fell close to Thanksgiving Day, the most celebrated holiday in the United States, which falls on the fourth Thursday of November. Along with Thanksgiving, every year comes Black Friday, the following day, when shoppers flock to the streets in search of bargains. This practice, which originated in the United States, has spread throughout the West and in recent years has expanded in duration, encompassing the entire weekend and even Monday, which has been dubbed "Cyber Monday" (sales are supposedly reserved for electronics).

Thus, the vibrant and colorful Pro-Palestine march on Saturday, November 29th, with slogans and banners calling for the release of Palestinian political prisoners and a demand for investment in the needs of the people, not war, "clashed" with a mass of shoppers shuffling from one department store to another, dragging bags and packages along with children. The pro-Palestine protests in Manhattan's shopping districts were not only heard through music, through chants accompanied by drums and even a tuba, but above all, it could be felt intensely and clearly in the air.

We started from Columbus Circle, on the corner of Central Park, shortly after reaching Fifth Avenue, and from there we walked down to the Bryant Park Public Library. Walking along the famous avenue, inspired by a slogan that read, "From the belly of the beast, hands off the Middle East!" I must say we truly entered the belly of the beast, shocking it. A woman I approached, smiling and offering her a flyer, angrily snatched it from me, shouting, "Shame on you!" She must have been an embittered Zionist, and I continued to smile, gaining the sympathy of others present. Another woman, contorting her face in what appeared to be great pain, warned me not to come any closer, and I heard an irritated Italian couple swearing at us. Probably tourists who delude themselves that no one here understands them, since they often don't understand others and resent having their favorite ways disturbed. And here I'd like to pause to reflect and take stock of the experience.

Let me start by saying that I'm not against shopping; on the contrary, it's an activity I occasionally enjoy, even though I prefer quiet days and reject compulsive pursuits. My parents ran a clothing store in our city for over forty years, so even if only out of respect for them and the passion they put into their work until the very end, I could never dream of a world without shopping.

However, I believe that purchasing should be done with "criterion" (Do I really need this thing?) and "with awareness" (Do I really like it? Do I really want it?). Especially nowadays, we can no longer avoid asking ourselves, "Where does this product come from? Who produces it?" We cannot help but question our moral conscience when we approach a store. While adhering to the first two points is a healthy exercise for ourselves, which I recommend to everyone because it helps us remain sober and in harmony, the third point has to do with the society we live in and its lies. We have become accustomed to hiding the fact that our well-being is built on the exploitation and suffering of a part of the world that we have excluded from our table for our own convenience: entire populations on whom the United States and its allies have imposed economic sanctions like nooses around their necks. The most striking cases are Venezuela, Cuba, and Iran (but they're not the only ones: around twenty countries are under various forms of embargo). Then there are those who, in exchange for giving them [only] crumbs instead of bombing them, are exploited and robbed of their resourcesGuatemala and much of Central America are experiencing this. Likewise, workers who struggle in dehumanizing chains whose only interest are the profits to be shared at the end of the yearAmazon, to name one, where a major grassroots protest is underway. Palestine, with its resistance, its saying "No! I will not allow myself to be obscured, forgotten, and robbed by remaining silent," has brought the issue of neocolonialism back to the center of the debate and to the prodding of individual consciences.

During the march, many people tried to look indifferent, but they couldn't; at most, they looked dazed. We all know what's happening in Gaza and the West Bank, and we all know that, faced with the cowardice and complicity of our governments, who persist in refusing to impose sanctions on Israel, a call for a global boycott has been launchedit's impossible to avoid the calls from the BDS [Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions] network, active on all social media.

There's no way to see what's going on under the skin of others, but I assure you, crossing Fifth Avenue, where the windows of Prada, Tiffany & Co., H&M, Zara, etc. sparkle, as part of an enthusiastic march during the glorious shopping day, has troubled many consciences.

Marina Serina