REPRESENTATIVE CORI BUSH (D-MO) |
USPC Virtual Panel
Please join the US Palestinian Council for a Virtual Panel featuring
Adrien K. Wing & George Bisharat
July 23rd 2021 @ 9PM EDT
Register in advance for this event:
A Reception with Representative Marie Newman (D-IL)
Dallas Palestine Coalition
Join the US Palestinian Council for a special event with:
REPRESENTATIVE
MARIE NEWMAN (D-IL)
May 21st 2021 @ 9PM EST
A Reception with Representative Betty McCollum (D-MN)
Join the US Palestinian Council for a special event with:
Representative Betty McCollum (D-MN)
Friday March 26th, 2021 @ 9PM EST
Register in advance for this event:
Reflect with Rashida: Join Rep. Rashida Tlaib for Healing Through the Arts: Palestinian Edition
Dear USPC friends,
Two years ago, Rashida won a crowded Democratic primary by just 900 votes. And in under two years in Congress, she has stepped forward as a progressive leader fighting corporate greed, demanding Congress put people first and centering marginalized communities who have been left unheard for too long.
Now, wealthy powers representing the status quo are seeking to defeat her.
Please invest in the work and advocacy she is doing by donating whatever you can at: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/covid19checkin
Dr. Khalil Barhoum
USPC President
Open Letter to Bernie Sanders
Dear Senator Sanders:
We, the undersigned, Palestinian-American organizations and
Palestinian-American community leaders around the United
States, would like to thank you on behalf of our community for
your unwavering support of justice, equality, and human rights
for all. We were proud to be among those who endorsed your
presidential campaign on March 2, 2020 as we took the lead in
urging our Palestinian-American community to commit
themselves to your campaign at all levels.
Now that you have endorsed Vice President Biden for the
Democratic Party’s presidential nomination, we would like to
call on you to continue raising your voice in support of justice
and equality for the Palestinians people.
The US Palestinian Council, along with other Palestinian-
American organizations, is leading the effort to ensure our
community’s full participation in the political process. While
making sure to have a voice in our democracy by cementing our
long and proud history of engaging in the democratic process,
we are quite aware that the 2020 presidential election may be the
most important campaign for our country in generations.
On behalf of our Palestinian-American community, we hereby
urge you to share our concerns with Vice President Biden and to encourage him to be supportive of vital issues to our
community. It is worth mentioning that our members have a
genuine and effective impact in the electoral process because of
their sustained level of political engagement. Having said that,
we would like to emphasize that the following issues are of
extreme importance to our community:
1. Human rights for all, including the Palestinians.
2. Ending the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, Gaza,
and East Jerusalem, based on United Nations resolutions.
3. Supporting the Palestinians’ right to self-determination.
4. Immediate reinstatement of US humanitarian aid to
Palestine.
5. Immediate lifting of the inhumane blockade of the Gaza
Strip, which has led to unsustainable humanitarian and
economic conditions for the two million Palestinians living
there.
6. Linking US funding to Israel with Israel’s compliance
with human rights norms and its adherence to international
law and UN Security Council resolutions.
We strongly urge you to help our community in highlighting
these principles and issues in your ongoing conversations with
Vice President Biden. We also will be very happy to engage
with his campaign on all issues that are of interest to both sides.
Respectfully yours,
Organizations:
US Palestinian Council (USPC); Americans & Palestinians for Peace (AMPAL); Palestinian American Council/ Louisiana; Palestinian American Council Chicago; The Arab Network for Culture, Opinion, and Media/ United States; Palestinian American Community Center/ New Jersey; Jerusalem Center/ Chicago; Palestine Aid Society/ Detroit; Network of Arab American Professionals of Orange County; Dallas Palestine Coalition; CPAO Coalition of Palestinian American Organizations; American Palestinian Club; Palesinian American Women Association; Palestinian American Youth Guild; Jifina Association; National Arab American Women’s Association (NAAWA); The Palestinian House of New England; The Jerusalem Conference-LA; Shiddo Alrehal- LA; Saris Association; Palestine American League; Palestinian American Coalition-San Francisco
Individuals:
Dr. Khalil Barhoum, US Palestinian Council President; Basem L. Hishmeh, Honorary President, American Ramallah Federation of Palestine; Dr. Hanna Hanania, Network of Arab-American Professionals, Co-Founder; Professor John Dabeet, US Palestinian Council Vice-President & Americans and Palestinians for Peace President; Eman Khaki, Carolina for Palestine member, Board member of the Palestinian American community center; Abdelhamid Siyam, Lecturer at Rutgers University, New Jersey; Dr. Ghassan Barakat, Chairman of the Board for Jerusalem Center, Chicago, IL; Osama Naser, Palestinian American Council President, Chicago, IL; Murjan Abu Mahmoud, Metroplex Palestinian American Council Chairman; Mohammad Abd-Elsalam, President, Palestine Aid Society- Detroit; Firas Tirawi, member of the General Secretariat of The Arab Network for Culture and its representative in America; Najat Arafat Khelil, Board Chairwoman National Arab American Women’s Association; Diab Mustafa, President of the Board of Directors for the Palestinian American Community Center, New Jersey; Salem Ajluni, Santa Clara County Single Payer Health Care Coalition; Noura Erakat, Jadaliyya and Rutgers University; Saba Shami, Arab American Democratic Caucus of Virginia; Husam Misleh, Former President, American Federation of Ramallah-Palestine; Samir Totah, Palestinian American Coalition, San Francisco; Sam Shihadeh, CPAO President; Senan Shaq, USPC Board member; Ghada Mansour Barakat, NAAWA Board member; Hanan Younes-Moore, NAAWA Board member; Rima Qasim, board member, Palestinian American Community Center, New Jersey; Bassam Eways, Former President, American Federation of Ramallah-Palestine; Bassam Doughman, President APC; Maher Massis, CPAO Board member; Amir Darwish, CPAO Co-Founder; Fuad Ateyeh, Palestinian American Coalition, San Francisco; Frederick T. Hadeed, Alexandria, Virginia; George B. Saba, former President of the American Federation of Ramallah Palestine; Dr. Burhan Ghanayem, Community Leader, North Carolina; Osama Abuirshaid, Executive director of American Muslims for Palestine; Amer Zahr, President, New Generation for Palestine; Imad Hamameh, Past President, United Taybeh American Association (UTAA); Yassar Dahbour, President, Palestine American League; Adeeb Alzanoon, Chairman-Sacramento Regional Coalition for Palestinian Rights; Ahmad Alahmad, Arab Service Center, Los Angeles; Maher Abdelqader, Palestinian American Congress; Nina Cullers, Bethlehem Association; Fathi Abboushi, Community Leader, Beit Hanina Community Center; Awni Abuhadba, Former deputy mayor, Patterson, NJ; Dr Jamal Nassar, Dean Emeritus, California State University, San Bernardino; Ramia Yazid, Palestinian American Activist, Chicago; Rev. Khader El-Yateem, Director for Evangelical mission and Assistant to the Bishop; Sam Hindi, Mayor and Council member, Foster City, CA
A COVID-19 Check-in with the Palestinian-American Community
Saturday, May 2nd, 2020 | 4:00 pm EST Via Zoom
Registration Link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIpfuChrjIrH9YphBYraJklBOUBSbMaBCJR
Important Congressional Letters Urge Trump Admin to Provide Necessary Humanitarian Assistance to Palestinians Battling COVID-19 Outbreak
USPC welcomes recent letters issued by members of the Senate and the House calling on President Trump and his administration to ensure that US humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza must be restored without delay in light of the alarming spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. This aid includes such urgent provisions as medicine and much-needed medical equipment. The letter in the Senate is led by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chris Van Hollen while the letter in the house is led by Reps. Chellie Pingree and David Price.
As a territory already subject to a long and inhumane blockade and siege, the Gaza Strip is especially vulnerable to the repercussions of a pandemic outbreak. The Trump administration has already scaled back aid to Palestinians and UNRWA, making the spread of the pandemic especially concerning.
USPC lauds the principled stand of the lawmakers who have taken this conscientious position by putting forth the letters, and emphasizes the importance of taking immediate steps to ensure that Palestinian lives are saved as the whole world battles this global pandemic.
Please use the following message and link to urge our leaders to provide necessary humanitarian assistance to Palestinians battling the COVID-19 Outbreak:
US Palestinian Council Endorses Rush Darwish to Illinois’ 3rd Congressional District
Rush Darwish is running in Illinois’ 3rd Congressional District against Marie Newman, Charles Hughes and incumbent Dan Lipinski He’s running to be the first Palestinian-American and Muslim elected to Congress from Illinois. He said: “I just think the time has come for the regular person, the middle-class person, to represent the Third District, somebody who reflects the majority of the people in the Third District,” Darwish said. “I’m not a career politician. I’m a small-business man. I’m literally trying to make a living. In my opinion, [the opponents] are extremely wealthy; they’ve got the big homes. … I come from a working-class family. I’m the child of immigrant parents.”
Because of his background and experience, Rush approaches issues of importance to USPC with a unique perspective. He is deeply committed to achieving peace and justice. If elected to Congress, Rush will be a strong advocate for Palestinian rights and sees an important role for US involvement in this process. Rush will push to restore aid to UNRWA and reopen the US consulate in East Jerusalem.
We call upon residents of Illinois’ 3rd Congressional District to vote for Rush.
We further encourage all to donate $25 or any amount to Rush’s campaign at I just gave to Rush Darwish!
https://secure.actblue.com/donate/uspc-rush
Palestinian American Organizations and Leaders Endorse Senator Bernie Sanders for President
More than any other presidential candidate, Senator Bernie Sanders has built a historically inclusive and forward-thinking movement, one that represents America as a set of ideas grounded in the belief that all humans are equal and worthy of dignity and rights.
Senator Sanders is a consistent supporter of justice, equality and human rights for all, including the Palestinian people. Unlike any other presidential candidate before him, Senator Sanders declared on stage at the Democratic debate of December 2019:
What U.S. foreign policy must be about is not just being pro-Israel. We must be pro-Palestinian as well.
Such a statement is unprecedented. Even the mere mention of the existence of Palestinians has been challenged by many politicians. Senator Sanders, however, has repeatedly drawn attention to the injustices of the occupation. Further, he has stated he believes that US foreign aid to Israel can be leveraged to hold it accountable for its human rights abuses. He has opposed anti-BDS bills, such as S.1., on First Amendment grounds. He has spoken out against the so-called “Deal of the Century” and is uniquely qualified to challenge the status quo when it comes to American foreign policy, especially in the Middle East.
We call upon Palestinian Americans to join those who support equality, justice, and human rights and urge them to vote for Senator Sanders.
We further encourage all to donate $19.48 – or any amount – to Bernie’s campaign at: http://actblue.com/donate/palestine
Signed,
Organizations: US Palestinian Council; The Arab Network for Culture, Opinion and Media in America; Palestinian American Council – Chicago, IL; Palestinian American Athletic Association – Chicago, IL; Jerusalem Center – Chicago, IL; Palestinian American Council – Louisiana; Palestinian Democratic Coalition; Network of Arab American Professionals of Orange County, CA; Palestinian American Club; Palestinian American Youth Organization; The Palestinian House of New England.
Individuals: Dr. Khalil Barhoum, President. US Palestinian Council; Dr. Rula Barakat, Palestinian American Woman’s Association; Masoud Khayyat, Dallas Palestine Coalition; Linda Sarsour, Co-Founder, MPower Change; Abdelhamid Siyam; Tawfiq Barqawi, Vice Chairman, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee; Nael Abid, Executive Director, Arab American Community Center of Florida; Monadel Herzallah, Arab American Union Members Council; Mohammad Abd-Elsalam, President, Palestine Aid Society – Detroit, MI; Firas Altirawi, Member of the General Secretariat of the Arab Network for Culture, Opinion and Media; Ghassan Barakat, President. Humanitarian Relief Foundation; Saba Shami, Arab American Democratic Caucus of Virginia; Paul Noursi, Arab American Democratic Caucus of Virginia; Hanna Hanania, Arab American Democratic Caucus of Virginia; Senan Shaq, Board member, US Palestinian Council; Yassar Dahbour, Arab American Caucus – California Democratic Party; Rateb Rabie, President/CEO. Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation; Walid Faris, President, Palestinian American Culture Center – Houston, TX; Samir Totah, Co-Founder, Palestinian American Coalition of San Francisco; Amir Darwish, Co-Founder, Coalition of Palestinian American Organizations; Rasha Mubarak, Unbought Power; Hussam Misleh, Former President, American Federation of Ramallah-Palestine; Amer Zahr, President, New Generation for Palestine; Jamal Nassar, Dean Emeritus, California State University – San Bernardino; Noura Erakat, Jadaliyya and Rutgers University; Sam Hindi, Mayor and Councilmember, Foster City, CA; Huwaida Arraf, civil rights/human rights attorney; Salem Ajlouni, Santa Clara County Single Payer Health Care Coalition; Amani Barakat, LA4Palestine; Nida Sahouri, Coalition for Justice in Palestine.