The Arabic word “زنانة” (“zanāna”) is used by residents of Gaza to refer to the sound produced by low-flying Israeli drones that occupy their skies. This ever-present abrasive buzzing is intentionally oppressive, merely one facet of the zionist entity’s total sensory assault on Palestine and its people.
During (and long before) the unambiguously genocidal campaign leveled in response to Hamas’s justified act of violent resistance on October 7, 2023, Gazans hear zanāna at every waking moment. It is a persistent reminder that their very existence is occupied.
All noise is political. No noise is neutral. Noise is not innately a force for good, but it can be, and quite an effective one. The same goes for those who produce it . . . and those who write about it. We must know our impact on the world before we can fight for change.
Noise Not Music rejects white supremacist imperialism and settler-colonialism, and all mutations thereof. Though there are no monetary components to the site, cultural boycotts are just as important as financial ones. That is why I am proudly committed to upholding the tenets of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI). A short version, courtesy of NYC Noise, is below.
Noise Not Music vows to
- boycott any cultural product or event funded, commissioned, and/or sponsored by an official Israeli body.
- not collaborate with or take money from Israeli institutions.
- refuse “normalization” efforts seeking to justify Israel’s violence or present a false symmetry between oppressed and oppressor.
- advocate for others to similarly divest from Israel, end support for the oppression of Palestinians, and pressure Israel to comply with international law.
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