Palestinians 'Nowhere in the Narrative' at DNC
Prem Thakker's first day on the ground included the DNC’s panel on Palestinian human rights – but did it mean anything? Plus, a quick exchange with Josh Shapiro.
CHICAGO – “I have held the hand of children who are taking their last gasps because their entire family was killed in the same attack,” said Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan on Monday during a panel at the Democratic National Convention, focused on Palestinian human rights. “For the children who I treated, who were discharged…they face a Russian roulette of 100 ways that they will likely and potentially die when leaving the hospitals due to the circumstances incompatible with life that have been architectured by this military assault, direct bombing, starvation, dehydration, disease, alarming reports of the first cases of polio in Gaza right now.”
Haj-Hassan recounted her experiences working as a surgeon in Gaza. She was joined by several other guests, including Hala Hijazi, a party organizer who has lost some 100 family members in Gaza, and former Michigan Rep. Andy Levin, who has been described as part of “America's only Jewish political dynasty”. (Later this week, Mehdi will host a roundtable discussion here in Chicago with Levin and prominent voices in the Uncommitted movement, so keep an eye out for that.)
“The panel showed that there is actually a collection of voter bases that are committed to the safety, dignity, and life of Palestinians and Palestinian humanity,” Mohammed Khader, policy manager of US Campaign for Palestinian Rights Action, told Zeteo.
The question, though, is whether such words are falling onto deaf ears, or a new political apparatus ready to heed what millions of people in the U.S. and globally have been demanding for nearly a year.
“What was very shocking was that while we were all in the room discussing and listening to people impacted by what’s happening in Gaza, we’re not certain that that message will get across to the people at the top of the party,” Khader added. “You look at the themes of the party’s convention – today, tomorrow, Wednesday, and Thursday – there’s nowhere where Palestinians are included in that narrative.”
The absence is so stark that even Palestinian-Americans are seldom acknowledged. Last week – as the U.S. announced it wouldn’t sanction an Israeli unit accused of killing a 78-year-old Palestinian-American – Israeli forces shot an American who was demonstrating against Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The State Department has simply told Zeteo that an investigation is ongoing.
On Monday, I met Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro at a press gaggle and asked him about the American citizen who was recently shot by Israeli forces.
“Do you have any comments on the incident?” I asked.
“I wasn’t aware of that, so I can’t [comment],” he said.
The lack of urgency displayed by the political and media sphere towards Palestinian suffering, coupled with concurrent Democratic governance, continues to concern people. After all, the same day the DNC hosted the panel, the party released a 92-page platform that, showed little recognition of the realities in Israel and Palestine (let alone that it had not a single mention of the word “Palestine”).