In Masafer Yatta, a collection of villages in the South Hebron Hills of the occupied West Bank, being a teacher is a hefty responsibility. The future of the children who live in this remote community — the very existence of which has been under sustained threat from Israeli state and settler violence for decades — depends on us.
Until 2009, there were no schools here at all. Students were forced to choose between either foregoing an education entirely, or attending school in the nearby city of Yatta; the latter required spending long periods away from family, staying with friends or distant relatives in the city — something my siblings and I did as children. ….more