Aaron Bushnell - Blog Posts
There's a number of people going after the artist for encouraging or glorifying self immolation or suicide, and others outright encouraging people to follow Bushnell's example of self-sacrifice. I want to try to say this so it will reach a couple more people.
This is not being shared to glorify or encourage self immolation or suicide in the name of protest. This is being shared so more people don't have to die trying to spread the same message. This is being shared so Aaron Bushnell's death was not in vain.
"Bodies upon the gears," but only the living can fight and remember the sacrifice of those who are gone. It is up to the living to continue the fight for those who are gone. This goes for Aaron Bushnell, and every single Palestinian lost in this genocide, and everyone else who has lost their life for what they believe in or for simply existing.
This has already been said better in this post and I'm sure plenty of others, but his message was not aimed at the government so they would stop aiding the genocide. His message was aimed at other military members, because without the military the government has no power.
[Comic excerpt from Fisheye Placebo by @yuumei-art and can be read here]
"free palestine," he shouted until his last breath. aaron bushnell, we will never forget you.
as much as bushnell's actions has moved us all, please seek other ways to take actionable measures against the injustices we face in the world. none of us wanted him gone, and the least we can do is prevent another such tragedy by supporting each other in our efforts to enact lasting change.
hope for them to sink lower until they were 7th feet underground 😂
ppl r blind i'm not surprised, y'all call this insane? what 'bout those trash that support 'genocide' with "self defense" as a reason? y'all b0mbing kids, get reality checked before u d!e plss
the last word he utter is the word that'll come true, aaron i hope u can see palestine free from up there
RIP. Aaron Bushnell I hope I can help spread your message like wildfire
this man is the saviour, i'm happy that i get to know him even after he trade his life for heaven
So I found Aaron Bushnell's reddit and went through his comments/posts. That young man was well read and stable as they can be. Nothing in his writings pointed to someone who was "unstable" or "brainwashed".
He held leftist and anarchist ideals. He belong to the ACAB subreddit. He recognized the evil of the US Military even though he himself was a part of it. He hated TERFS and called out fatphobia. He understood the dangers of white supremecy and the evils of capitalism.
He had a cat. He liked the show fleabag and played elden ring.
Apparently in his will he wants to leave any money in his name to palestinian relief funds. He was trying to find a new owner for his cat.
Rest in peace Aaron Bushnell. The world won't forget & we sure as fuck won't let the media paint you out to be some crazy conspiracy theorist who had no idea what he was doing.
RIP. Aaron Bushnell I hope I can help spread your message like wildfire
“You simply cannot fit more America into a single incident than a man dying a horrifying death in protest of war crimes while a first responder screams at cops to stop pointing their guns at him and go get fire extinguishers. If you were to pick a single moment in history to sum up the essence and expression of the US empire, that would be it.”
Caitlin Johnstone, The Most American Thing That Has Ever Happened
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/2/26/suicide-vs-genocide-rest-in-power-aaron-bushnell
Article on Aaron Bushnell's death, unbiased from what I read.
Rest in Power, Aaron Bushnell.
a man self immolated in front of the israeli embassy in washington dc yesterday. not just any man. an active member of the us air force. he live streamed his death, and said that he refused to be complicit in a genocide any longer. he said that compared to what palestinians were facing every day, setting himself alight was nothing.
let me reiterate. an active duty air force member burned himself alive because he was so disgusted by what the us government was openly supporting. he live-streamed his own suicide, so the whole world could bear witness as a man in his military uniform set himself on fire to protest his government’s complicity in the horrors that we have all been forced to watch happen in real time. he became a new horror. footage of the immolation blurs him out the moment the fire catches, but you can hear him. it is over in seconds, really, but you can hear him screaming. he shouts “free palestine” until his body physically cannot make any sounds other than guttural screams of agony. and then he falls silent. a police officer arrives and points a gun at his still burning body, shouting at him to get down on the ground. and it is over.
his name was Aaron Bushnell. he was twenty five years old. and he isn’t here anymore because the political ruling class has decided that genocide is perfectly fine as long as it preserves imperialism. in the coming days, people will try to discredit him. to say that he was mentally unstable. they will try to bury his actions to save face and defend israel’s propaganda. do not let them. aaron knew what he was doing. he knew what he was doing when he put on his military uniform, set up his twitch stream, and made his final walk up to the embassy. he knew what would happen to him when he flicked that lighter. do not let them forget. aaron’s blood is on the hands of the political ruling class.
NOW: Palestine solidarity activists hold a vigil outside the Israeli embassy in Washington DC where 25 year-old U.S. airman Aaron Bushnell took his own life by self-immolation to call for an end to Israel’s genocide in Gaza