Yesterday at the Climate March, someone shouted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”. It was an unfortunate thing. A clean example of the climate changing instantaneously among 85,000 activists.

I was there for four reasons:

1. My definition of God is “science is indescribably beautiful and we must respect her”
2. I can’t think of a more regrettable waste of tax money than having to spend it on health issues we can prevent if only we take better care of our environment
3. I have a weak spot for an activist friend, who, through stealth influencing, had instilled in me a deep sense of FOMO about the event
4. The Dutch carnival season had kicked off on November 11, and I was in the mood for a parade

The phrase was understandable coming from the Palestinian woman. Still, I appreciate that its most vicious context of use taints it so ferociously with antisemitism that deploying it as a vehicle for unity is a recipe for disaster. The crowd was so immense that it took hours of dancing in place before we even got started on the route. By the time we got to Museum Square, the words had already left the woman’s mouth.