Two killings took place on American soil. One made headlines around the world, drew condemnation from heads of state, and was labeled an act of terrorism. The other was a six-year-old Palestinian-American boy, stabbed to death in his home near Chicago. He was quickly forgotten.

This article focuses on these two incidents not because they are the only ones, but because they highlight a pattern. Palestinian deaths in the United States have occurred before and since, often receiving little to no media attention. We choose to highlight the killing of Wadea al-Fayoume precisely because of the brutality of the crime and the innocence of the victim. His murder offers a stark lens through which to examine how Western media constructs narratives around violence depending on whether the victim is Israeli or Palestinian.

This is the hierarchy of grief in the West. And it is the product of decades of conditioning, propaganda, and a press that continues to sanitize apartheid and occupation while vilifying the people who resist it.

Two Killings, One Narrative

On October 14, 2023, Wadea al-Fayoume, a six-year-old Palestinian-American child, was murdered by his family’s landlord in Plainfield, Illinois. He was stabbed 26 times. His mother was also attacked. The man who killed him reportedly targeted them because they were Muslim and Palestinian. Wadea’s death was treated as a hate crime. The headlines were sympathetic. The vigils were heartfelt. But the media coverage faded within days.

On May 21, 2025, two Israeli embassy staffers, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, were shot and killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. The suspect, who reportedly shouted “Free Palestine” during the attack, was quickly labeled a terrorist. The press framed the killings as antisemitic, as a threat to democracy, as an attack on civilization itself.

Both crimes were appalling. Both were motivated by hate. But only one was used to advance a political agenda.

When a Palestinian Dies, It’s a Tragedy. When an Israeli Dies, It’s a Crisis.

The difference in coverage was not just about tone. It was about purpose. Wadea’s death was presented as an unfortunate consequence of tension. The Israeli deaths were presented as a direct assault on everything America holds sacred. Biden spoke. Congress condemned. Flags were lowered.

There were no flags for Wadea. There were no speeches. No walls of punditry demanding justice. No calls to disarm those who incite hatred of Palestinians. The same press that warns us daily about rising antisemitism refused to talk about the scale of anti-Palestinian racism in the country it calls home.

And why would they? The very media outlets shaping public opinion have spent months painting Palestinian resistance as extremism, and Israel’s massacre of tens of thousands as self-defense.

Manufactured Sympathy and Weaponized Grief

When Israeli citizens or diplomats are killed anywhere in the world, the Western media follows a script. Profiles. Photos. Childhood stories. Future plans. Lives cut short. Empathy is automatic. Coverage is extensive. World leaders mourn. The narrative is simple: civilized people were attacked by savages.

When Palestinians are killed, it is always different. Context replaces sympathy. Their deaths are explained away, rationalized, dehumanized. Even children. Even Americans. Even when it happens right here.

This is not accidental. It is systemic. The media does not fail to tell Palestinian stories. They choose not to. Because telling them truthfully would mean questioning the legitimacy of a regime their governments bankroll and protect.

Who Gets to Be a Victim in America?

The truth is not just that media coverage differs. It’s that lives are weighed differently.

A six-year-old Palestinian-American was murdered on U.S. soil and the country moved on. The murder of two Israeli adults in Washington became a weeklong mourning event, complete with national statements and terrorism charges.

We are told this is about antisemitism. But what about anti-Palestinian hatred? What about the fact that Americans who oppose genocide are being painted as threats while Israel’s actual war crimes are normalized?

The media cannot be neutral in a system built on apartheid. And every time they elevate one death while erasing another, they take a side. They are not simply reporting grief. They are distributing it based on strategic value.

Say Their Names

Wadea al-Fayoume was six years old. He loved games and cake and his mother. He was killed because his people are seen as disposable. Because he belonged to the wrong side of a war he had no part in.

Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim were embassy staffers. Their deaths were horrific. They were also used. Used to prop up a regime that bombs refugee camps and starves children, even as it demands the world grieve for its own.

Both sets of lives mattered. But only one story was allowed to matter.

This is the cruelty of American media. This is what apartheid looks like when exported.

And this is why we will keep saying Wadea’s name.