Chicago, Illinois – Abbas Alawieh sat cross-legged on the ground outside the Democratic National Convention in an almost meditative posture.
In front of him, on the cement, were signs that read “Not another bomb” and “Arms embargo now,” with the four corners held together by water bottles.
The scorching August sun beat down on her forehead, but Alawieh did not move, even as the concrete around her heated up.
He and other delegates from the Uncompromised National Movement are organizing a sit-in to protest the Democrats' refusal to allow a Palestinian-American speaker onto the convention's main stage at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
“This situation of the Palestinian spokesperson is a mistake on the part of the party, and I think that is why we are seeing such a large outpouring of support for the idea,” he told Al Jazeera on Thursday.
The Democratic National Committee confirmed its decision on Wednesday evening, sparking outrage among many progressives and groups allied to the Democrats.
For many activists, the rejection of the request was a sign of an effort to silence Palestinians and exclude them from the “big tent” coalition the Democratic Party says it is building.
The move also highlighted the uphill political battle Palestinian rights advocates say they are facing in their effort to challenge unconditional U.S. support for Israel as it wages a devastating war in Gaza.
That conflict looms over the Democratic convention, where the party has been celebrating and promoting the candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris since Monday.
The 'uncommitted'
About 30 “uncommitted” delegates won a spot at the Chicago event after hundreds of thousands of people cast protest votes in the Democratic primary against President Joe Biden’s staunch backing of Israel’s war in Gaza.
Out of that protest movement emerged the Uncompromising National Movement, which wants Harris to back an immediate and permanent ceasefire and impose an arms embargo on Israel.
The request for a Palestinian speaker at the convention was the simplest of their demands, the advocates said, but was rejected nonetheless.
However, Alawieh said the movement's presence at the convention had succeeded in drawing attention to the issue, as demonstrated by the media frenzy surrounding it on Thursday.
“We are forcing a conversation on a critical issue: Palestinian human rights,” he told Al Jazeera.
“We are forcing a conversation on a critical issue that would otherwise go unheard here, which is the need for an arms embargo that saves lives and creates a lasting ceasefire. That is what we are doing here and that is what we will continue to do long after we are done here.”
After more than 10 months of Israeli bombardment of Gaza, the Palestinian death toll has surpassed 40,000, sparking fears of genocide.
Human rights advocates have called for a significant shift in US policy toward Israel, to which it has provided military and diplomatic support.
After Biden dropped out of the presidential race in July, some activists saw an opportunity when Harris took over as the Democratic nominee.
After all, the vice president expressed compassion for Palestinian suffering and called for an end to the war, but human rights advocates say they want to see action, not mere rhetoric.
'They want to erase us'
In Chicago, “uncommitted” delegates have said their goal is to convince Harris that aligning herself with their “popular” demands would help her win in the November presidential election, when she faces Republican rival Donald Trump.
But rejecting a brief speech by a representative of the Palestinian-American community appears to have had a profound effect on the delegates and their allies.
At a press conference on Thursday morning, progressive political strategist Waleed Shahid took a deep breath to hold back tears as he recounted how his request for a Palestinian president was rejected after two months of making the demand.
“We came here with the intention of mobilizing our communities to help Vice President Harris defeat Donald Trump,” said Shahid, whose black blazer covered a beige shirt that read: “Democratic Majority for Palestine.”
He added that the demand for a speaker was simply intended to include “Palestinian Americans as part of this party, just like any other community.”
On Wednesday night, the convention was attended by the parents of an Israeli-American captive held in Gaza.
“The party platform says that our Democratic Party believes that Israelis and Palestinians are equal,” Shahid said. “What happened last night is not in line with the party’s values.”
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, who spoke virtually at the press conference, said the Democratic leadership does not want to listen to the voices of Palestinians calling for an end to atrocities in Gaza.
“They want to erase us,” she said. “They want to make it seem like Palestinians and the voices that we have and the hurt and suffering that we feel are ignored. [don’t] exist.”
Several speakers noted that the Chicago area is home to one of the largest Palestinian communities in the country, but Palestinians were still excluded from the convention's main stage.
Lawmakers express support for delegates
In addition to Tlaib, several lawmakers have expressed solidarity with the “unpledged” delegates. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who expressed strong support for Harris on Monday, called Alawieh during the sit-in Wednesday night to express her support.
Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, who represents parts of Chicago, said many of the 40,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza were relatives of his constituents.
“As Chicago hosts the Democratic National Convention, we cannot ignore Chicago’s Palestinian community, one of the largest in the country, and they too deserve to see themselves reflected on the national stage,” Garcia said in a statement.
“It is crucial to recognize the humanity of the Palestinian community tonight with the Palestinian speaker.”
Chicago's Palestinian community is one of the largest in the country, and it deserves to be reflected on the national stage as well. #DNC2024CHICAGO image.twitter.com/TG5oQHzOpN
— Jesus “Chuy” Garcia (@Chuy4Congress) August 22, 2024
The United Auto Workers (UAW), one of the largest unions in the country, also called for a Palestinian speaker at the convention.
“If we want to end the war in Gaza, we cannot bury our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party,” the union said in a post on social media.
The UAW is particularly strong in the key state of Michigan, home of the US auto industry, which also has the highest concentration of Arabs in the country.
Michigan state representative Alabas Farhat told Al Jazeera at the sit-in that Democrats must listen to and acknowledge the pain of Palestinians and Arab Americans.
“There is a genocide underway and this administration is playing an active role in facilitating it in many ways,” he said. “Today, the Democratic Party nominee is laying out a vision that must include us.”
He said his constituents are “frustrated” with the political process and stressed that Harris has “work to do” to win over people in the antiwar movement.
Implications of civic engagement
Biden, a Democrat, has been staunchly supportive of Israel throughout the war, prompting some activists to question whether working with the Democratic Party is worth it.
Hatem Abudayyeh, spokesman for the Coalition to March on the Democratic National Convention, which has been organizing protests around the convention, said there was “no chance” the Democratic Party would allow a Palestinian speaker to address the convention.
While he welcomed the efforts of the “uncommitted” delegates, he argued that it is more important to join with other communities to “organize in the streets” and push for social justice.
“It is clear that those in power do not listen to us. They do not care about what is happening to us. [us]”And they are not going to stop the genocide unless we force them to,” he told Al Jazeera at a protest on Wednesday.
Maya Berry, executive director of the Arab American Institute (AAI), which has been promoting civic engagement in Arab communities for years, said the Democrats' decision to exclude Palestinians from the convention stage sends the wrong message about political participation.
“Our theory of change is based on saying: if you want something to happen, you have to be involved in the process,” he told Al Jazeera outside the United Center.
“And the very people who are involved in the process, who have dedicated their lives to this process, had to leave the convention to spend the night here… because democracy did not work in Palestine. That cannot be the lesson,” he added.
“This is bad political practice that is damaging people's connection to their democracy.”
