Words Matter: The Israel-Hamas War

The way we use words impacts the way they are received and perceived.

The Israel-Hamas war is being accompanied by a barrage of news reports, social media posts, and peer comments that can be upsetting or confusing. This is, in part, because of the way certain words and phrases are misused and even weaponized. “Genocide,” “ceasefire,” and “disproportionate response,” among other words and phrases, have taken on political connotations that distort their original meaning or the situations they are used to describe.

The iCenter has compiled a collection of articles and resources that delve into the legal and historical meaning, as well as the meaning implied by political and common usage, of terms we’ve been hearing frequently in the context of the current Israel-Hamas war.