Washington, DC – Vice President Kamala Harris says she will “not be silent” in the face of Palestinian suffering, as Israel’s war in Gaza rages on.
But Palestinian rights advocates want to know exactly what that means for United States foreign policy.
The vice president — and the Democrats’ likely nominee for the presidency — emphasised the plight of Palestinians in Gaza after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday. Nevertheless, she pledged ongoing support for Israel.
Activists say expressing sympathy for Palestinians without pursuing a meaningful shift away from the US’s policy of unconditional military and diplomatic support will not help Harris win back voters alienated by President Joe Biden’s approach to the war.
“Without an actual commitment to stop killing the children of Gaza, I don’t care about her empathy for them,” said Eman Abdelhadi, a sociologist at the University of Chicago. She stressed that the US bears “responsibility” for the atrocities committed against Palestinians.
“To be empathetic to someone that you’re shooting in the head is not exactly laudable. We don’t need empathy from these people. We need them to stop providing the weapons and the money that is actively killing the people that they’re supposedly empathising with.”
And both Biden and Harris support a ceasefire.
Do 70% of Democrats also support a complete cessation of all weapon sales to Israel? Or ending our diplomatic ties with Israel? Or even a two state solution?
This is a complex web of an issue. Support for a ceasefire does not translate to support for stopping weapons to Israel, nor anything else about the issue. Don’t pretend otherwise
Biden and Harris do not support a ceasefire. If they did they would use their leverage to achieve it.
Words and actions are different don’t pretend otherwise.