Over the past ten months, Minnesota state representative Ilhan Omar has been one of the lone voices in the U.S. political Establishment to consistently speak out in support of the Palestinian people. On Wednesday, she joined a pro-Palestinian protest outside the Democratic National Convention.
BREAKING: Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) joins a protest sit-in by Uncommitted delegates outside the DNC at Chicago’s United Center. She embraced one of the demonstrators who appeared to become emotional. pic.twitter.com/Vz49P8n1Ie
— Oliya Scootercaster ???? (@ScooterCasterNY) August 22, 2024
CNN reports that the sit-in was organized by Uncommitted Movement co-founder Abbas Alawieh after he received a phone call from a DNC official denying the group’s request for a Palestinian speaker. The demonstration followed a statement by the Uncommitted Movement — an anti-war, pro-Palestinian group of would-be Democratic voters who are choosing to stay uncommitted in order to advocate for a cease-fire in Palestine and an arms embargo against Israel — calling for Palestinian voices to be heard at the convention. “We are learning that Israeli hostages’ families will be speaking from the main stage. We strongly support that decision and also strongly hope that we will also be hearing from Palestinians who’ve endured the largest civilian death toll since 1948,” the statement read.
STATEMENT: Uncommitted delegates urge the Democratic Party to reject a hierarchy of human value by ensuring Palestinian voices are heard on the main stage. We are learning that Israeli hostages’ families will be speaking from the main stage. We strongly support that decision and…
— Uncommitted National Movement ???? (@uncommittedmvmt) August 21, 2024
As protesters at the sit-in read out the names of Palestinian children who have been killed in the genocide, some DNC attendees were filmed covering their ears as they passed by:
DNC attendees cover their ears as the names of dead Palestinian children are read as they leave the convention pic.twitter.com/9bueCbFeEr
— BreakThrough News (@BTnewsroom) August 22, 2024
The Uncommitted statement noted that the group had provided the Democratic Party with a list of names of potential speakers. Georgia Representative Ruwa Romman, who would have been a potential pick to speak, tweeted that her speech would’ve “urged us to unite behind Harris, criticized Trump, and spoke about the promise of this moment” and later published the full speech with Mother Jones.
Omar wasn’t the only politician calling for Palestinian voices to be heard at the DNC. AOC, Rashida Tlaib, Cori Bush, and others — including United Auto Workers — tweeted their support:
Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, so too must we center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 22, 2024
To deny that story is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians. The @DNC must change course and affirm our shared humanity. https://t.co/bxk8wk63oK
When a majority of voters are demanding a ceasefire & an end to the genocide, it is completely out of touch & disgraceful for the DNC to deny Palestinian Americans a voice at the convention.
— Cori Bush (@CoriBush) August 22, 2024
Michelle Obama implored us all to do something. I’m imploring our party to do better. https://t.co/v463vjgHSN
I think it should be both Illinois State Rep @rashidforil + GA State Rep @Ruwa4Georgia. Both Democrats, both Palestinian American. They can do it together. https://t.co/AZgsD64rOj
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) August 22, 2024
I believe we can be the party that honors diversity, inclusion, and justice. We must listen to all the members of our coalition.
— Delia Ramirez (@DeliaRamirezIL) August 22, 2024
The voice of the Palestinian community deserves to be heard on the Democratic stage.#NotAnotherBomb pic.twitter.com/sjpLnIuaLd
If we want the war in Gaza to end, we can’t put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party. If we want peace, if we want real democracy, and if we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian…
— UAW (@UAW) August 22, 2024
Meanwhile, the group Muslim Women for Harris-Walz said in a statement that they would be disbanding following the news. “We cannot in good conscience, continue Muslim Women for Harris-Walz, in light of this new information from the Uncommitted Movement, that VP Harris’ team declined their request to have a Palestinian American speaker take the stage at the DNC.”
Over the course of the DNC this week, the violence in Gaza has gone nearly without mention on the main stage. Earlier in the day on Wednesday, Omar gave a speech alongside Uncommitted activists that expressed her support for the effort and her pride in the 32 percent of constituents in her own district who cast uncommitted ballots in the Democratic presidential primaries. “It’s been unconscionable for me, in the last ten months, to witness my colleagues in this administration refusing to recognize the genocidal war that is taking place in Gaza; to not see the mothers who have lost countless children, the babies whose dead bodies are being dug out, to not understand that working tirelessly for a cease-fire is really not a thing, and they should be ashamed of themselves for saying such things,” she said. “Because we supply these weapons, so if you really wanted a cease-fire, you’d just stop sending the weapons.”
Her comments were widely interpreted as being a response to AOC’s DNC speech on Monday, in which she said that Kamala Harris “is working tirelessly to secure a cease-fire in Gaza and bringing the hostages home.” It’s worth noting, however, that Omar tweeted in support of AOC’s speech, and on Wednesday she went on to talk specifically about the U.S. secretary of state, Antony Blinken. “How do we allow our secretary of state to go into Israel, say, ‘We are close to securing a cease-fire,’ now for the 11th time, to leave for Egypt, only for Bibi Netanyahu to have a press conference right after him and say, ‘We are not taking a deal that ends this war?’” She went on to thank the uncommitted voters and her colleagues Representatives Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush for their pro-Palestinian advocacy.
Vice President Kamala Harris has an opportunity to demonstrate our party’s courage and commitment to ending the genocide not just in condemning it with words, but in action by conditioning aid.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 21, 2024
A better world is possible, but we must have the courage to fight for it. pic.twitter.com/2fQvpmCX7X
As for Kamala Harris, when she was interrupted by pro-Palestine protesters at a rally earlier this month, she responded defensively, saying, “You know what, if you want Donald Trump to win, then say that. Otherwise, I’m speaking.” According to the New York Times, she met with Alawieh and his Uncommitted Movement co-founder, Layla Elabed, earlier that same day. Describing the meeting, a campaign spokeperson told the Times that Harris had “reaffirmed that her campaign will continue to engage with those communities.” But as of right now, it sounds like the Harris-Walz campaign’s willingness to engage doesn’t include giving Palestinians a chance to speak for themselves at the DNC.
