AOC leads progressive firestorm accusing Kamala Harris campaign of ‘dehumanizing’ Palestinian Americans with DNC snub

The DNC has rejected a request from pro-Gaza activists to allow a Palestinian-American to spread their message on the main stage.

That has led to a wave of outrage from progressives, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

“Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, we must also center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed by Israeli bombardments. To deny that narrative is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians,” AOC said.

‘The [DNC] “We must change course and reaffirm our shared humanity,” the progressive New Yorker wrote of X.

But during her primetime address on Tuesday, Ocasio-Cortez told Vice President Kamala Harris’ crowd: “She’s working tirelessly to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and bring the hostages home.”

Demand for a Palestinian vote reached a fever pitch on Thursday, ahead of Harris’ keynote speech.

Progressives wanted Ruwa Romman, the Palestinian MP for the state of Georgia, to represent their cause in front of the cameras.

The DNC heard Tuesday from Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin, the parents of US-Israeli hostage Hersh Polin, who paid lip service to the Palestinian cause by pleading for a hostage deal in a heartbreaking call to action.

“Right now, 109 precious people are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza,” Goldberg said.

“They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists. They come from 23 different countries. The youngest hostage is a 1-year-old red-haired boy and the oldest is an 86-year-old grandfather with a moustache. Among the hostages are eight American citizens. One of those Americans is our only son. His name is Hersh.”

“In our Jewish tradition, we say that every person is an entire universe,” Polin said.

“We must save all of these universes. In a Middle East inflamed, we now have the one thing that can most immediately relieve the pressure and bring hope to the entire region, a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of innocent civilians in Gaza. The time is now.”

“Rachel and Jon deserved every second on that stage. I also believe that a Palestinian-American voice deserves to be heard on that stage. I would love to hear from them [Romman] and I hope the DNC will give her the opportunity to be heard,” Israeli-American Alana Zeitchik, six of whose family members were taken hostage on October 7, said on X.

“Rep. Ruwa is a Democratic leader who is committed to keeping Georgia blue and getting VP Harris elected. She would be a unifying speaker for peace,” said Rep. Maxwell Frost, a 27-year-old Florida Democrat who is making his main stage debut Thursday night.

“I’ve had a pretty crushing few days, but honestly today took the cake. I don’t understand how there’s room for an anti-abortion Republican but not me in our party. I need someone to tell me what to do next,” Romman posted on X after confirming she would not be speaking at the DNC, referencing Georgia’s pro-life ex-Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who spoke on stage.

The Chicago metro area is home to the largest Palestinian-American community in the country. Throughout the week, some DNC attendees held up signs with the names of those who died in Gaza.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson responded “yes, of course” when asked whether a Palestinian-American should be given speaking time at the DNC.

“We are talking about thousands of babies and the elderly who are being abused by an act of war.”

The Palestinian cause has been mentioned, though no one has directly blamed the Biden-Harris administration for the 10-month conflict. That would likely mean charting our own course and ignoring the teleprompter: No speech that casts the top of the Democratic ticket in an unfavorable light would be approved by the DNC.

However, some have noted that the loud cries for a Palestinian-American on the program only increased after the convention had begun, while the preliminary program had long been established.

The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza estimates that around 40,000 people have been killed in the region since the war broke out following the October 7 attack.

“The vast majority of Americans want an end to the bombings, the return of the hostages, and long-term peace. Palestinian Americans deserve to share their stories on the #DNC stage. And we must listen and take action for human rights. #Notanotherbomb,” Rep. Greg Casar, the progressive House leader and Democrat from Texas, wrote on X.

“When a majority of voters demand a ceasefire and an end to genocide, it is utterly outrageous and outrageous that the DNC would deny Palestinian Americans the opportunity to have their voices heard at the convention,” said Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., who recently lost a primary to a challenger more friendly to Israel.

She also attacked Michelle Obama’s call for left-wing critics of the Democratic Party to be quiet.

“Michelle Obama begged all of us to do something. I beg our party to do better,” Bush said.

“The moment something goes wrong, the moment a lie takes hold, folks, we can’t wring our hands,” Michelle Obama had said. “We can’t have a Goldilocks complex about whether this is right.”

“So people, we cannot be our own worst enemy,” she concluded.

Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (Democrat of Michigan) is a Palestinian-American congresswoman. She said that all the talk of “hope” and “joy” surrounding Harris at the top of the ballot should be “shattered” by the plight of Palestinians.

“When you hear what we’ve done to families for generations, it shatters the false narrative of hope and joy,” she said.

During a press conference for the pro-Palestinian Uncommitted National Movement outside the DNC, Tlaib shouted over FaceTime, “We shouldn’t have to beg.”

“A Palestinian-American sharing his or her story, calling for a ceasefire and the release of all hostages, and urging everyone to support the ticket against fascism would be powerful,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who also took a seat on the main stage, wrote on X.

Even the United Auto Workers union got involved in X:

“If we want the war in Gaza to end, we cannot bury our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of 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-American speaker to be heard on the DNC stage tonight.”

“The Palestinian right to self-determination was erased by the British with the Balfour Declaration, which included civil and religious rights but not political rights. The Democratic Party is making a tragic mistake in 2024 by perpetuating this erasure of the Palestinian narrative and voice,” added Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California.

“Seeing Rachel and Jon Goldberg Polin on stage last night was powerful and heartbreaking. It was important because it wasn’t about politics, it was about empathy and humanity. I cried as they shared their story and their grief with the world,” Haddar Susskind, an Israeli-American and former IDF soldier, said on X.

“But grief and humanity are not limited to Israelis, and neither should empathy be. I stand with my Palestinian friends in calling for their voices and their humanity to be similarly recognized and valued… I hope the DNC will reconsider and put a Palestinian-American on stage tonight.”

The Uncommitted group has held regular press conferences outside the convention, and they had one DNC-sanctioned panel on Palestinian human rights. The panel included the group’s co-founders and doctors who had worked in Gaza.

The group saw it as a victory to be included in the DNC after fighting the Biden-Harris ticket in states where they encouraged Democrats to vote “uncommitted” in protest of Biden’s relationship with Israel.

“This is a historic moment that the DNC has convened a panel to discuss Palestinian human rights, but I also realize that this is not enough… policy change is the only thing that will bring about a ceasefire,” said Layla Elabed, co-founder of Uncommitted.

Advocates are beginning to wonder whether Harris will shun Biden’s handling of the Middle East conflict, though she has shown no policy leeway with the current administration.

Still, co-founder Abbas Alawieh struck a hopeful tone: “Vice President Harris will engage with us on this issue.”

“We see this as a step in the right direction,” he told the press.