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The latest judicial rebuke of President Donald Trump鈥檚 proposed border wall arrived just in time for July 4, when a federal appeals court again blocked the administration from diverting $2.5聽billion in military funds toward the wall. But as history shows, court orders aren鈥檛 always effective in halting construction or expansion of walls that 鈥渄ivide neighborhoods, worsen dangerous flooding, [and] destroy lands and wildlife,鈥� as the Sierra Club explained in a statement following the court鈥檚 June preliminary injunction. As part of Grassroots International鈥檚 work defending the human right to land, water, and food, my colleagues and I engage in conversations with farmers worldwide. One topic surfaces time and again with those from the U.S.-Mexico border and Palestine: how to resist the walls carving up their communities. Just a few days before the blocking funds for Trump鈥檚 wall, 49 Palestinians鈥攊ncluding eight paramedics and one journalist鈥攚ere wounded the Israeli barrier fencing in the people of Gaza.

Today marks 15 years since the International Court of Justice offered a glimmer of hope that the situation of Palestinian farmers might change. On July 9, 2004, the ICJ issued an deeming Israel鈥檚 West Bank wall illegal, calling on Israel to dismantle it and pay reparations for any damage caused, and reaffirming the duty of all states to ensure Israel ends its violations of international law. For Palestinians and those of us who have stood by them in their long struggle for freedom, this was a rare victory. Israel, however, has yet to heed a word of the ruling. As the U.S. continues to shield it from international pressure while bankrolling its military occupation, Palestinian families living closest to the wall suffer the most.

According to a 2015 report by the Applied Research Institute-Jerusalem, 60% of affected communities reported that . By the time the wall is complete, it鈥檚 likely Israel will have there. Including the broader impact of Israel鈥檚 military occupation and settlement expansion, the loss goes in the West Bank. This isn鈥檛 the only militarized barrier Israel has built. There鈥檚 one along its border with Egypt that鈥檚 meant to keep out African refugees. This southern wall has been聽 as a model for the U.S.-Mexico border. In fact, the U.S. is already employing Israeli border technology used to destroy Palestinian communities and enforce聽.

What鈥檚 happening to Palestinians is not simply something happening 鈥渙ver there.鈥澛燛lbit Systems of America, a subsidiary of an Israeli company, is the U.S.-Mexico border.聽Elta North America, another such subsidiary, was paid between $300,000 and $500,000 . The institutions responsible for harming people operate across borders far more than most people realize, yet many groups are joining forces to gain strength. Resisting what鈥檚 been described as 鈥渢he wall industry,鈥� organizers around the world like the聽Stop the Wall Campaign聽in Palestine, solidarity and human rights groups in Mexico, and others are coordinating advocacy efforts as part of a聽#WorldWithoutWalls聽campaign. As a聽member聽of La Via Campesina, an organization that includes over 200聽million small-scale farmers and Indigenous peoples from 81 countries, Palestine鈥檚聽Union of Agricultural Work Committees聽has been organizing with others facing threats to their livelihoods.

We cannot allow walls and borders to divide, fragment, and isolate us. Those fighting uphill battles miles away need our support and solidarity in order to persevere. Their victories will create a more just and peaceful world for us all. I鈥檓 reminded of .鈥� Ultimately, 15 years after the ICJ ruling, it鈥檚 clear that the courts alone will not deliver justice. We need indivisible solidarity among those of us who reject racism, and who value human life and dignity more than profits.

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