The philosopher’s work has been too easily applied to Israel and Palestine
Frantz Fanon is a thinker who is worshipped but seldom read. Known for his provocative meditations on political violence, he is frequently dredged up in the argument over the Israel-Palestine conflict, which for many Leftists is the ne plus ultra of settler colonialism in the 21st century. In the aftermath of Hamas’s homicidal assault on civilian communities in Southern Israel, alongside mantras of “decolonisation is not a metaphor”, there was an enthusiasm among some sectors of the Left for what they misconceived as an act of anti-colonial “resistance”.
