{"id":43922,"date":"2020-09-28T14:22:43","date_gmt":"2020-09-28T14:22:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/?p=43922"},"modified":"2020-09-28T14:22:43","modified_gmt":"2020-09-28T14:22:43","slug":"ashrawi-urges-american-arabs-to-unify-for-palestine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/?p=43922","title":{"rendered":"Ashrawi urges American Arabs to unify for Palestine"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\nHanan Ashrawi, a Ramallah-based member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee and popular English language voice for the Palestinian cause in the US, urged American Arabs to \u201cmobilize\u201d and set aside their differences to strengthen the voice of the Palestinian diaspora.<\/p>\n

\nDuring a Zoom discussion Saturday with American Arab leaders, hosted by ArabAmerica.com, Ashrawi said the US Arab community faced many of the same \u201cvery difficult conditions and obstacles\u201d that Palestinians face around the world.<\/p>\n

\nBut, Ashrawi said, if they could bridge their differences and unite around common principles of justice, they could become an important voice as advocates for the Palestinian cause.<\/p>\n

\nShe argued it was especially important as US society becomes more polarized, but argued that Palestinians and Arabs needed to respect each other in order to unify.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cYou cannot antagonize others. You can\u2019t intimidate others. You cannot insult others. You have to work with them to find common ground,\u201d Ashrawi urged.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cEven when you challenge. I challenge a lot. I am known to be very blunt. I don\u2019t mince words. But at the same time I don\u2019t insult. I don\u2019t bring other people down. What you need to do is to be able to challenge in a way that shows you respect yourself so that others will respect you. This is extremely difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nAsked about how to bridge the divisions that segment Palestinians in the US and abroad, Ashrawi urged all sides to embrace their differences, saying: \u201cArabs are not identical and we are not monolithic. We have to celebrate our diversity.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cWe are all under attack,\u201d she said. \u201cIn the US, you are seeing the rise of identity politics \u2026 You cannot be neutral in the face of such racism \u2026 and such distortions. You must embrace your Arab identity and be proud of it. What we have to do is to mobilize to make our space in the public discourse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nAshrawi criticized the Arab League, calling it \u201ca disaster\u201d in confronting Israel\u2019s atrocities and oppression. She acknowledged Palestinians could do a better job of communicating, but said that they were working under oppressive conditions and without major funding or backing.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cIt\u2019s difficult because what we do, we do voluntarily and there is no funding,\u201d Ashrawi said.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cWe have a problem, if you want me to be very frank with you. We have a problem with many in the leadership think that they know it all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nAshrawi also said that rivalries prevented there from being a clear and powerful strategic message.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cThey don\u2019t think anyone else has the ability to present the cause. We don\u2019t have the funds. We don\u2019t have the institutions \u2026 we try desperately to face a real assault,\u201d Ashrawi said.<\/p>\n

\nShe assed it was important for Palestinians and Arabs in the US to engage in the political system as a unified voice.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cYou need to speak out. You need to stand up and speak out. You need to challenge. You need to make the facts known, to get people to unlearn what they have learned because for a long time Israel was dictating the agenda,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cWork within a group. Work collectively; organize, use the system. Work with other people because it is an intersectional issue. You can work with women. You can work with African Americans. You can work with youth. You can work with indigenous people. You can work with others who feel marginalized, excluded and oppressed. The mentality of oppression is the same everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nShe stressed: \u201cYou have natural allies in the state. You have to work together \u2026 Within the system you can influence political decisions. Hold your representatives accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nAshrawi defended the Palestine National Authority, adding they \u201cdo not make political decisions\u201d unlike the PLO.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cIt is unfair to say failure, failure, failure \u2026 they did many things. They built many institutions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cYou have to place it in context. The Palestinian leadership is working under extremely adverse conditions and circumstances. They have no powers. They have no rights like everyone else. Israel controls everything, the lands, the resources, the water, our lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nAshrawi added that while Palestinians continued to push for action from the International Criminal Court, Israel and the US continued to obstruct that legal process.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cThey are punishing the individuals who are in charge of the global judicial and accountability system,\u201d Ashrawi said. \u201cThis is unconscionable.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hanan Ashrawi, a Ramallah-based member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee and popular English language voice for the Palestinian cause in the US, urged American Arabs to \u201cmobilize\u201d and set aside their differences to strengthen the voice of the Palestinian diaspora. During a Zoom discussion Saturday with American Arab leaders, hosted by ArabAmerica.com,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43922","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spotlight_news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43922","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=43922"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43922\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=43922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=43922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=43922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}