Letter from the Editor: Politics Edition 2021
The following was originally published in Palestine in America’s 2021 Politics Edition. Order a print copy or subscribe today!
New administration. Same fight.
Whether being in the movement as organizers or in the political space as activists, Palestinians have seen many times how people and whole communities are left behind for the sake of elevating a single issue or winning a political campaign. For many of us, leaving Palestinians behind, one community — or even one person — is far too many. Can we truly achieve liberation under the assumption that freedom for one person comes at the expense of another? Though campaigns can be tempted to compromise on human freedom, operating from a place of solidarity frees us from those temptations. I am constantly recommitting myself to that solidarity.
Throughout my years in political activism, advocacy work, and grassroots organizing — in the heart of central Florida and across this nation — I have mobilized in the streets, roamed the halls of power, and advocated from the newsrooms to the courtrooms to center our most vulnerable communities, including our own, the Palestinian people. I have moved through these spaces en route to achieving a better world, one that exhibits freedom, justice, and equality for all.
As a person of conscience, I understand that it’s dangerous and counterproductive to sacrifice the rights of some as ‘exceptions’' to the human rights of all. I am inspired by Shirley Chisholm’s call to be “unbossed and unbought.” I am compelled to contribute to the legacies and work of Chisholm and so many Black, brown, and Indigenous women — then and now.
POWER can be achieved without sacrificing our principles: we need to consistently place people over profit and reject toxic preservation of the status quo. UNBOUGHT POWER works to train and build people power, advocate for community issues through legislative power, and elect those who share values into power. UNBOUGHT: the only way to collective liberation, equality, and freedom for all.
The electoral process alone won't liberate us, and I believe that power is attainable without forfeiting our values. It is part of a larger multifaceted path toward a more equitable world, a path that includes movement-building grassroots organizing, advocacy, protests, BDS, issue-based campaigns, mobilizations, and, yes, the ballot box. We vote with the deep understanding that the electoral process was never meant to set us free. In fact, voter suppression is alive and well.
These are oppressive systems designed to make voting the hardest for our most vulnerable communities. We see that across the country. The Black and brown communities carry the burden of overcoming ongoing efforts to suppress our voices and our votes, which generates disenchantment, disengagement, and fatigue.
While Palestinians are tired of choosing the cleaner dirty shirt, elections go beyond presidential; we have elected the most pro-Palestinian Congress to date, bringing a new far-left agenda within the legislative walls. We have an opportunity to answer global calls for Palestine’s freedom and advocate for policy that is inclusive of Palestinian human rights, and we have a responsibility to push back against anything that further normalizes Israel’s occupation.
Violent policies and oppressive systems are not new, and we have to continue to advocate for the most disenfranchised. The disproportionate disparities and inequities plaguing Black and brown communities can, have, and will continue to exponentially amplify under elected officials and administrations seeking to sustain a white supremacist agenda. And too often, we experience rabid Islamophobic, anti-Palestinian, and racist rhetoric from both sides of the aisle. These are not just problematic policies; this is a form of violence against peoples. Hate crimes and hate incidents targeting communities of color have increased in recent years.
As Palestinian activists, we have seen, endured, and continue to drown in harmful policies that flood our state Capitols during essentially every legislative session. Local, federal, and state legislatures continue to enact damaging laws that suppress our freedom to boycott and protest. Their unlawful laws have paved the way for more extreme bills like Florida’s HB741, which defines certain types of criticism of Israel as anti-Semitism and could criminalize young activists and students on university campuses who are vocal about Palestinian human rights.
And anti-freedom of speech bills are only a dash of the discriminatory pieces of legislation that have passed. We will continue to take to the streets; we have to continuously push back against these anti-Palestinian and racist policies; we must recommit to protecting the human rights of not just the Palestinian people, but the Black, brown, and Indigenous communities, by building collective power.
When people push for racial justice, Medicare for All, clean water, and climate justice, they can no longer leave Palestine out of the equation. Fortunately, we have congressional leaders like Reps. Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman, who join Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar in the fight for justice for all. Bush brings a long history of Palestinian-Black solidarity from activist circles to the halls of Congress. People are not only winning elections on their unwavering stance for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, but the masses are powerfully connecting the dots between shared struggles against racism and oppression.
In fact, establishment Democrats who reject BDS and Palestinian self-determination underperformed in the November 2020 elections. It was Black and brown organizers that removed a fascist from office. The establishment failed to confront the racial resentment driving voters. They want to shy away from centering #BLM, Defund the Police, climate justice, and Palestinian human rights movements.
As a Palestinian woman in this work, I too often find my communities are marginalized on both sides of the aisle. However, Palestinians in the struggle refuse to forfeit our rights to fight for justice and will use our abilities to mobilize people-centered movements because we understand how it pieces with the elements in working toward a more free world, for all.
In this issue, we have the honor of showcasing the world of advocacy, grassroots organizing, and political activism of so many Palestinians on the forefront of decolonial work. These people continue to dedicate their lives to the diaspora, put their bodies on the line for the movement, and be unwavering in their fight for freedom. Welcome to PIA’s UNBOUGHT Politics Edition.
In Solidarity,
