"From the River to the Sea" has Many Meanings; Here's One

Do we ask the protesters what they mean when they chant, "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free"?

When you use a word, it comes with an attached meaning. Yes, it is helpful to ask the person what they meant in using that word, but it does not absolve that person of using the wrong word or phrase. The phrase "from the river to the sea" has many meanings attached to it, one of which is that you intend to have for your own all the land stretching from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. It treats the Jews as unlawful occupiers who need to be expelled from the land, and since they obviously are not going to move out on their own, it just might require exterminating them. Six million Jews were killed in the Holocaust. By comparison, there are maybe 8 million Jews in Israel. Would clearing them off the land that stretches "from the river to the sea" be genocide? You decide. Would it be ethnic cleaning? You decide.

People who use the N-word can say, No, that is not what I meant. People who fly the Confederate flag can say, No, that is not what I meant. But meanings are attached to the N-word and Confederate flag that you cannot escape. We are responsible for the words and phrases we use.