Original Statement available here
Three days ago I received a copy of an article titled “Arizona Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and Progressive Democrats and Community Leaders Statement on Presidential Election.” The document had a hundred co-signers/co-authors. I found it warranted, worthy, and compelling—an exemplary collective statement and all the more so with a hundred public signers. I was able to get in touch with one who I happened to know, and so emerged what follows. I hope that if you haven’t already, you will click the above title and read the collective document before continuing with this article, because the intent in this “interview” is to get behind the article, not reiterate it.
My experience in recent weeks has been that a good many people feel intense emotional, moral, and pragmatic qualms about voting for Harris in swing states in order to stop Trump even while they already agree with most or even all of the sentiments and intentions in the collective document. So with little time before the election, and with no opportunity for follow up, I emailed five questions hoping for some responses that might help others in the week ahead. With less than a day to reply, four Palestinian signers sent back answers.
Maher Arekat Answers:
- Please introduce yourself a bit to readers and to me for that matter, and then if you would your reasons for signing on to the document, basically your hopes for what it might accomplish.
My name is Maher Arekat. I’m a Palestinian American refugee. My family left in 1967 during the second Nakba. I reside in Phoenix, Arizona. I’ve been in this lovely country for 53 years. I’m a peace activist. I work for human rights in Palestine. I’m the founder of the Palestine Community Center of Arizona. I help a lot of charities. I try to do the best I can for the US and also for the Palestinian people.
One of the main reasons I helped do this statement obviously is we don’t want that fascist in office. The best outcome of this election would be Harris, because I see hope in the Democratic Party even though the majority of elected officials like in Congress are not on board with fighting for Palestinian human rights. Many are. More and more. Basically none of the Republicans are. The best outcome would be Harris for President. We can’t have Trump for many, many reasons — obviously the top reason is what’s going on in Palestine and Gaza and how he would make it even worse. And also as an American for many other reasons with a lot different causes and what this country is going through.
The statement is creating a lot of controversy and we’re getting a lot of pushback. But it’s also showing a lot of people that we need to be on the right side of this for the right reasons. It’s a wake up call for our community, our families, our people whether they are Palestinians, Muslims, or Arabs — to be a matter of fact and to show leadership that we need to do this. We cannot afford to be on the sidelines. America is a two party system. Democrat or Republican. We can either have the crazy fascist Mr. Trump or it’s gonna be Kamala. And I have a good feeling that Kamala will be the first Madame President and be better for us. She’s part of the administration, but it wasn’t her call. It was Mr. Biden’s call to be complicit in this genocide.
- Can you indicate if you felt a kind of resistance or obstacle in yourself to signing a document that was in the end urging votes in swing states for Harris, even while acknowledging and hating her complicity in genocide. And, if you did, how did you overcame it and so decide to attach your name? On the other hand, if you yourself didn’t feel such hesitancy, perhaps you have encountered it in others. If so, perhaps you could indicate why you feel warranted in asking others to overcome it?
It’s been a tough call. It’s been a tough decision. Until about 2 or 3 weeks ago I wasn’t. I’ve been thinking long and hard and actually losing sleep over it. But I’m looking long term and long term is the right judgment that I have to make for myself and our people back home. Hopefully this decision will be the best for us and in our country. We cannot afford to have another four years of Trump destroying this country and attacking our movement. That’s why I came through. I’m hoping we can rally the troops here in Arizona and do the right thing. Obviously we are in a battleground state and we cannot vote Jill Stein or not vote. That’s why I decided to back Harris for President.
- Even in the few days since the document appeared, or perhaps earlier in discussing it with others, have you encountered from family, friends, workmates, or fellow organizers criticism or even anger over your choice to sign, and, if you have, how do you feel about that and respond to it?
Not so much anger, but I have to do a lot of explaining. When I do explain it makes sense to the family, friends, and community members. They can relate to what the statement is saying. The statement makes the argument clearly and it shows the variety of different people who take this position. It has persuaded a lot of them to come to my camp and back Harris and Democrats. A lot of them were going to vote for Democrats down ballot but not for President, but now they’re coming on board to vote for a Democrat for President. Yes, it’s been tough but I’m a reasonable man. I have a lot of people with open minds. They were pushing back but I had a lot of one on one phone calls. I’m an old timer. I do a lot of phone calls instead of texting or emailing or whatever. I’ve had to do a lot of explaining on the phone in the last few days since the statement came out.
- Whether Harris or Trump wins, how do you see your own broad post-election personal priorities? Will the fact of your voting for Harris in Arizona have any impact at all on what you do post election?
Of course it will encourage us and give us more hope to push her and the Democrats to come out and do the right thing and start with a peace process to give our people back home, the Palestinian people, hope. A lot of people back home feel our hope can only come through the USA and who leads this country. It’s going to be a lot of work for us afterwards to keep pushing and to have this administration to do the right thing and solve this problem once and for all and have peace. Because neither the Palestinians or Israelis are going anywhere. America has to be an honest broker through Kamala and help us find a solution. America has to do the right thing and start the peace process immediately. It should be a top priority. A stable Middle East is gonna come through solving this problem and the Palestinian people gaining freedom.
Mohamed El-Sharkawy Answers:
Note: Mohamed lost 50 family members in one strike early in the war in Gaza last year. He can’t reach some family members currently.
- Please introduce yourself a bit to readers and to me for that matter, and then if you would your reasons for signing on to the document, basically your hopes for what it might accomplish.
A- Mohamed El-Sharkawy, Palestinian American, born and raised in Gaza City, went to Aviation school in Cairo, Egypt, Came to the USA after college and work and now works for one of the major airlines.
I signed on the document in the hope that the new president would stop the genocide in Gaza.
- Can you indicate if you felt a kind of resistance or obstacle in yourself to signing a document that was in the end urging votes in swing states for Harris, even while acknowledging and hating her complicity in genocide? And, if you did, how did you overcome it and so decide to attach your name? On the other hand, if you didn’t feel such hesitancy, perhaps you have encountered it in others. If so, perhaps you could indicate why you feel warranted in asking others to overcome it.
Yes, absolutely, until 2 weeks ago, I was one of the advocates for “Abandoning Harris”, but the more I listen to Trump speaking in his rallies, I realized that we can have a fascist, selfish, unhinged, and corrupt person to be a president of USA.
- Even in the few days since the document appeared, or perhaps earlier in discussing it with others, have you encountered from family, friends, workmates, or fellow organizers criticism or even anger over your choice to sign, and, if you have, how do you feel about that and respond to it?
Yes, I had backlash from family members and friends because the genocide and the holocaust are still going on in Gaza and the current administration is aiding in that. But I say, anyone but Trump.
- Whether Harris or Trump wins, how do you see your own broad post-election personal priorities? Will the fact of your voting for Harris in Arizona have any impact at all on what you do post-election?
I hope Kamala Harris would do what she said she would do, end the wars immediately, work on peaceful solutions to the conflict, and bring justice and peace to the region. Otherwise, I think it will be the time to start thinking about and encourage the Third Party.
- Finally, were there any other lessons you took from being part of the collective document process that you would like to share?
No more wars, No more bloodshed.
Stephen Mufarreh responses:
- Please introduce yourself a bit to readers and to me for that matter, and then if you would you reasons for signing on to the document, basically your hopes for what it might accomplish.
I am a first generation American. My father was born and raised in Ramallah in the West Bank, Palestine. He was forced to immigrate to the United States due to Israel’s occupation of Palestine.
My hope is that the letter sends a clear signal to the Democratic Party that they need to do better than just being the “lesser evil” choice. I would like to see the Democratic Party break free from the shackles of the Israeli Lobby by upholding human rights and International law consistently.
- Can you indicate if you felt a kind of resistance or obstacle in yourself to signing a document that was in the end urging votes in swing states for Harris, even while acknowledging and hating her complicity in genocide. And, if you did, how did you overcame it and so decide to attach your name? On the other hand, if you yourself didn’t feel such hesitancy, perhaps you have encountered it in others. If so, perhaps you could indicate why you feel warranted in asking others to overcome it?
I was 100% set on voting for Jill Stein so I was very resistant to signing the letter. I felt I would be betraying my community by publicly endorsing Kamala Harris. But more importantly, Kamala Harris has done nothing to earn the Arab or Muslim vote. However, I have spent the last several weeks in deep conversations with a diverse coalition of human rights activists. I was presented with an alternative perspective, one that was not grounded in my desire to rightfully punish the Biden/Harris administration, but one that accepts the terrible reality of a second Trump presidency. It was hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that I would vote for Harris while she was part of the genocide administration, but we fair a sliver of hope pressuring Harris. We stand zero chance with Trump.
- Even in the few days since the document appeared, or perhaps earlier in discussing it with others, have you encountered from family, friends, workmates, or fellow organizers criticism or even anger over your choice to sign, and, if you have, how do you feel about that and respond to it?
People have rightfully criticized me for voting for Harris and I do not blame them. It hurts to hear people cut us down and question our motives when we care so deeply about our Palestinian brothers and sisters. However, my feelings are irrelevant to the loss experienced by those living the horrors on the ground in Palestine. Hopefully with time, our community will come to see that we based our decision to vote for Harris after carefully evaluating this decision from all angles, just as I know they did with their decision to vote for Dr. Jill Stein.
- Whether Harris or Trump wins, how do you see your own broad post-election personal priorities? Will the fact of your voting for Harris in Arizona have any impact at all on what you do post election?
The short answer is NO. We already know that neither the Democrats nor the Republican have ever been fair and neutral regarding Palestine. We have been told by many insiders that AIPAC has too much control in Washington. Therefore, our fight for human rights is a long one. Irrespective of who we vote for, everyone in our community has a few bruises from this journey and we are all a bit wiser. You will see a multi-pronged approach with even more community building and activism after this election.
- Finally, were there any other lessons you took from being part of the collective document process that you would like to share?
Intentionally left blank.
Fadi Zenayed Answers:
Fadi resume: Former President of the Youth Federation of Ramallah, Palestine (AFRP) (1980); former board member of AFRB (various years); former President of the Chicago Club of Ramallah, Palestine (1984) current Vice-President of the Phoenix Club of Ramallah Palestine; Chicago Regional Director of the Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) 1984-1985); former President of ADC-Chicago (1988-1990 and 2009);author of Observations of Israel’s Apartheid System (2024); former Secretary Palestinian American Congress (1995)
- Please introduce yourself a bit to readers and to me for that matter, and then if you would you reasons for signing on to the document, basically your hopes for what it might accomplish.
My name is Fadi Zanayed. I have been involved within Arab-American politics for 45 years. I signed the document because I believe strengthening the Progressive Party within the Democratic Party is our best hope for establishing peace in the Middle East. Leading the community to this direction is in the best interests of the Progressive and Arab communities.
- Can you indicate if you felt a kind of resistance or obstacle in yourself to signing a document that was in the end urging votes in swing states for Harris, even while acknowledging and hating her complicity in genocide. And, if you did, how did you overcame it and so decide to attach your name? On the other hand, if you yourself didn’t feel such hesitancy, perhaps you have encountered it in others. If so, perhaps you could indicate why you feel warranted in asking others to overcome it?
I came out in favor of Harris 10 days before this statement came out. I wanted to lead on this issue because I believe that this is in the best interests of the community. I received much criticism. I was called a traitor, genocide supporter. I pushed back knowing that people were expressing emotions rather than expressing clear constructive thinking. I answered with reasoning and logic.
- It is a related question, and I hope legitimate to ask, even in the few days since the document appeared, or perhaps earlier in discussing it with others, have you encountered from family, friends, workmates, or fellow organizers criticism or even anger over your choice to sign, and, if you have, how do you feel about that and respond to it?
I have not received any backlash from the statement. I gave noticed that it is widely distributed having thousands of retweets and hundreds of comments, many being positive. Harris is the only logical choice and people are being to realize it.
- Whether Harris or Trump wins, how do you see your own broad post-election personal priorities? Will the fact of your voting for Harris in Arizona have any impact at all on what you do post election?
I believe that whoever wins we need to strengthen the Progressive wing of the Democratic Party. If Harris wins we need to have a strong Progressive wing to influence her in the right direction. If Trump wins, the Progressive wing needs to organize for 2026 and 2028.
- Finally, were there any other lessons you took from being part of the collective document process that you would like to share?
I believe that a reasoned statement always needs to be part of the process. The statement acknowledges all our concerns with the genocide, how reluctant we are in the choice we have to make but the right choice we did make.
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4 Comments
I can’t reply for the hundred or so signers of the document, but for myself I would suggest that you might want take a moment to look at the list and assess to yourself how you think they may be feeling. You think maybe they share your outrage…. Then ask yourself why they urge you to vote for Harris if you re in a swing state instead of trying to punish the disgusting policies you abhor by making the situation even worse. Then perhaps ask yourself what it actually says. why it conveys, what it means, that you don’t care about their views, you feel no need to really think about them, but instead want to personally feel good, I guess, about the box you check, the box Netanyahu wants you to check.
My son is Palestinian. I lived in Palestine for many years. I played soccer in stone strewn yards with Palestinian kids for hours on end, kids like the ones who are having their legs amputated. I was 2 blocks away from a building destroyed by 2 Apache hellfire missiles. Don’t condescend to me about not caring about the views of Palestinians.
Okay, though I wasn’t questioning your feelings, or experiences, I was pointing out that people with what are undoubtedly very similar feelings have come to a very different conclusions. I was wondering why you would you say you don’t care about lesser evil arguments? I get you might feel they are wrong, say. In which case you would reject them. But surely you don’t mean to suggest they are beside the point, not relevant, do you?
For example, if what the article says is true, if Trump winning would make things vastly worse for Palestine and more widely as well, and if, as well, in any event not voting for Harris in a swing state won’t serve to punish Democrats in a way that would alter their future choices positively, then in light of consequences not voting for her wouldn’t make sense because it would have opposite its hoped for effect. So, do you disagree with the article’s logic. With its evidence. Admittedly, it was brief, but how do you think it was wrong?
The Biden-Harris administration has expedited the shipment of 2000lb bombs full of fragmentation shrapnel to Israel. The tiny tinanium cubes pierce the legs of children and disintegrate their legs from the inside. If they are lucky and there is still an ambulance available and a hospital nearby left standing, their legs are amputated. If they aren’t, they die of internal bleeding.
I don’t care about your “lesser evil” arguments. I’m not checking a box that lets this go unpunished.