Rashida Tlaib refuses to be silenced as Israel bans visit to occupied Palestine

Israel met with strong criticism on 15 August for banning elected US politician Rashida Tlaib – the first ever Palestinian-American congresswoman – from visiting occupied Palestine. The occupying state then said it would consider allowing her to visit relatives if she promised “not to act to promote boycotts against Israel”. But as people in the US rushed to show solidarity with Tlaib, she insisted she would not “bow down to [Israel’s] oppressive & racist policies”:
Silencing me & treating me like a criminal is not what she wants for me. It would kill a piece of me. I have decided that visiting my grandmother under these oppressive conditions stands against everything I believe in–fighting against racism, oppression & injustice. https://t.co/z5t5j3qk4H
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) August 16, 2019
What Israel proposed to @RashidaTlaib was their age-old proposition: you can stay in your homeland as a humanitarian exception- without political rights- & on condition you surrender & cease to resist. Thank u Rashida for rejecting these terms and making it clear what is at stake https://t.co/ocLVlkawMX
Read on...
Support us and go ad-free— Noura Erakat (@4noura) August 16, 2019
Statement from @RashidaTlaib: “My family and I have cried together throughout this ordeal…It is with their strength and heart that I reiterate I am a duly elected United States Congresswoman and I will not allow the Israeli government to humiliate me and my family.” pic.twitter.com/EBlxbiU03h
— Waleed Shahid (@_waleedshahid) August 16, 2019
Israel had previously barred Tlaib and fellow congresswoman Ilhan Omar from visiting East Jerusalem and the West Bank (i.e. Palestine, not Israel) over their support for the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. The US House of Representatives recently gave implicit justification to this Israeli policy by voting overwhelmingly to condemn the BDS movement. Only a small number of congress members opposed the resolution. Tlaib, meanwhile, put all of the resolution’s backers to shame with a powerful statement in defence of free speech.
For many people, Israel’s position came as no surprise:
My grandparents fled to Palestine in 1936 as refugees. I have Israeli citizenship. Half of my family lives in Israel. My parents met & got married in Israel.
In the same breath, I can also say that Israel is an ethnonationalist apartheid state.
If I can do that, you can too.
— Esor (@esorfasal) August 15, 2019
Just a reminder that any Jewish person can become a citizen of Israel in like a day even if they have no family there while Palestinians like Tlaib who has family still in Palestine can be banned by the Israel from returning to her family’s home
(it’s called ethnonationalism)
— Esor (@esorfasal) August 15, 2019
Trump: SEND HER BACK
Israel: Sorry Palestinians aren’t allowed back— Mike Prysner (@MikePrysner) August 15, 2019
The racist Trump-Netanyahu alliance
Since becoming US president, Trump has worn his pro-Israel bias on his sleeve shamelessly. He controversially recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital city. He moved the US embassy there. And he sparked outrage around the world for doing so.
Trump has also called for official recognition of Israel’s authority over stolen Syrian land. And he has formed a close relationship with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu; the man who oversaw Israel’s war crimes during its 2014 attack on Gaza (the one that reportedly killed at least 1,483 Palestinian civilians).
All of that is despite the US being fully aware of Israel’s crimes. Since 2000, for example, Israeli armed forces or settlers have reportedly killed over 2,000 Palestinian children.
Trump has also used Israel as an excuse for spewing racist bile against elected US politicians who oppose him. And this week, he openly encouraged Israel to ban Tlaib and Omar from visiting occupied Palestine:
The President of the United States is joining with a foreign government to punish duly elected representatives of the people to quash their dissent and prevent them from doing their job. This is shameful on his part and on the part of the Israeli government. https://t.co/nBb3vAdGAx
— John Legend (@johnlegend) August 15, 2019
So youre only allowed into Israel if Trump says so…
Even if youre a United States representative.
And why on earth wouldnt Israel want two 'not in their pocket' reps to see the West Bank? https://t.co/HmA4TVICBO— lynda williams #InMemoryOfTheWhiteRose (@ysbryd1) August 15, 2019
All progressives must stand up and be counted
Fortunately, Tlaib and Omar are not alone. And numerous progressives have stood alongside them in solidarity while slamming Israel’s travel ban:
.@AOC is showing what real political consequences for unjust Israeli government actions looks like.
We call on other members of Congress to join her and refuse to travel to Israel until the government reverses their decision and allows @RashidaTlaib and @IlhanMN to enter. https://t.co/4MVvM6AuCJ
— IfNotNow🔥 (@IfNotNowOrg) August 15, 2019
If Prime Minister @Netanyahu doesn't want members of Congress to visit Israel, then maybe he can respectfully decline $3.8 billion in annual funding—the largest amount of U.S. aid to any country.
I believe in an even-handed approach to ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. https://t.co/GGVHi8pzSk
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) August 16, 2019
It is disgusting that a bigot like Trump is attacking @RashidaTlaib and @IlhanMN in this way. Opposing Netanyahu's policies is not “hating the Jewish people.” We must stand together against those who promote hatred and racism in Israel, Palestine, the U.S. and everywhere. https://t.co/Sq8FikcumK
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) August 15, 2019
Anti-Semitism is not some abstract idea to me. It is very personal. It destroyed a good part of my family. I absolutely reject Trump's disgusting efforts to exploit fear of anti-Semitism to attack my colleagues. pic.twitter.com/IwpSmxcnHF
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) August 15, 2019
It’s disgraceful that Netanyahu is denying @IlhanMN & @RashidaTlaib access to Israel due to their political views.
This isn’t a partisan issue. When a nation blocks a member of Congress from entering their borders, they are insulting the American people. https://t.co/FUJAH2t8mJ
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) August 15, 2019
Israel doesn't advance its case as a tolerant democracy or unwavering US ally by barring elected members of Congress from visiting because of their political views. This would be a shameful, unprecedented move. I urge Israel’s government to allow @IlhanMN and @RashidaTlaib entry.
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) August 15, 2019
I’m calling this like I see it: bigoted, short sighted and cruel. Any leader committed to advancing democracy would welcome with open arms two democratically elected United States Congresswomen. And every single member of Congress should be calling this out. https://t.co/Ydn3KQLofn
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) August 15, 2019
However, one Jewish Voice for Peace activist has stressed that progressives shouldn’t let the Democratic Party establishment off the hook. She argued that Democratic elites have failed miserably at holding Israel to account for its crimes. She also pointed out that:
for months, and in fact years now, they’ve been working against the [BDS] movements, trying to pass legislation against the [BDS] movement, calling it antisemitic. So they have contributed to the demonisation and delegitimisation of these congresswomen which resulted in this action.
"The Democrats' absolute inability to hold Israel accountable for any of its human rights violations is what has allowed it to continue to increase, with impunity, its repressive policies," @RVilkomerson of @jvplive says of Israel barring entry to @Ilhan and @rashidatlaib. pic.twitter.com/i8uxfNx7Db
— Democracy Now! (@democracynow) August 16, 2019
Trump and Netanyahu are very much part of a violent, racist, elitist alliance that is gaining strength around the world. And liberal centrists – like those still at the helm of the Democratic Party – are clearly hindering the fight against that toxic, hard-right alliance. Tlaib and her progressive supporters, on the other hand, are at the forefront of the resistance. So they deserve all the support we can give them.
Featured image via screenshot and U.S. Embassy Tel Aviv
We need your help to keep speaking the truth
Every story that you have come to us with; each injustice you have asked us to investigate; every campaign we have fought; each of your unheard voices we amplified; we do this for you. We are making a difference on your behalf.
Our fight is your fight. You’ve supported our collective struggle every time you gave us a like; and every time you shared our work across social media. Now we need you to support us with a monthly donation.
We have published nearly 2,000 articles and over 50 films in 2021. And we want to do this and more in 2022 but we don’t have enough money to go on at this pace. So, if you value our work and want us to continue then please join us and be part of The Canary family.
In return, you get:
* Advert free reading experience
* Quarterly group video call with the Editor-in-Chief
* Behind the scenes monthly e-newsletter
* 20% discount in our shop
Almost all of our spending goes to the people who make The Canary’s content. So your contribution directly supports our writers and enables us to continue to do what we do: speaking truth, powered by you. We have weathered many attempts to shut us down and silence our vital opposition to an increasingly fascist government and right-wing mainstream media.
With your help we can continue:
* Holding political and state power to account
* Advocating for the people the system marginalises
* Being a media outlet that upholds the highest standards
* Campaigning on the issues others won’t
* Putting your lives central to everything we do
We are a drop of truth in an ocean of deceit. But we can’t do this without your support. So please, can you help us continue the fight?
-
Show Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to leave a comment.Join the conversationPlease read our comment moderation policy here.