Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) condemned the lack of Palestinian-American speakers at the Democratic National Convention, saying she “cannot help but feel ignored.”
“As a Palestinian-American, I can’t help but feel invisible. Our trauma and pain feel unseen and ignored by both sides. One side uses our identity as an insult and the other refuses to listen to us. Where is our common humanity? Ignoring us will not stop the genocide,” Tlaib said. In an interview The news organization Zeteo, founded by former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan, made the announcement on Monday.
Tlaib was among several Democrats, particularly progressive lawmakers, who publicly criticized the convention in Chicago last week for not allowing Palestinians to speak or be represented there.
In the weeks leading up to the Democratic National Convention, the Unfettered National Movement had called for inviting a Palestinian convention speaker, arguing that it would send a clear message that Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Harris was moving away from President Biden’s position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
When this did not happen, the informal delegation and their pro-Palestinian allies said they were deeply upset, with some particularly angered that the parents of American hostages held by Hamas were given time to speak at the convention.
Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American member of Congress, told Zeteo that the DNC “made it clear in its speech that it values Israeli children over Palestinian children.”
This comes after fellow progressive Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pennsylvania) said Sunday that the convention was a “missed opportunity” by refusing to allow a Palestinian-American to speak.
Lee said he felt some people considered it “taboo” to discuss Palestinians’ experiences even before Oct. 7, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing about 1,200 people in the Gaza Strip and taking about 250 hostages.
“I think when you’re going through something, like all people, you want to tell your own story. And [are] Palestinians, Palestinian Americans, Arabs and Muslims all wanted that opportunity,” she said.
In her speech, Harris pledged that the United States would always defend Israel and help it defend itself, and said Israel “will never again face terror” after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel and took about 250 hostages, but she also expressed concern over the deaths of more than 40,000 people in the Gaza Strip.
“What has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months has been devastating,” she said to applause. “The scale of suffering is heartbreaking. President Biden and I are working to end this war so that Israel is safe, the hostages are free, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, and freedom of self-determination.”
But some pro-Palestinian activists say they want Harris to offer a more direct condemnation of the conflict and a more nuanced view than Biden has offered.
The Hill has reached out to the Democratic National Committee and convention organizers for comment.
