“My name is Ruwa Romman,” Ruwa Romman had wanted to say, “and I’m honored to be the first Palestinian elected to public office in the great state of Georgia and the first Palestinian to ever speak at the Democratic National Convention.”
Romman is a vocal and prominent activist for Uncommitted, the movement that led a sit-in protest at the conference for a chance to speak. Initially, the movement pushed for Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, a pediatric intensive-care doctor who volunteered in Gaza, to speak although she is not Palestinian. After this request was denied, the movement sent a list of more names for potential speakers, including Rep. Romman. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s office was reportedly pushing for a speech from Romman.
In an interview, Romman called herself a safe, last resort. “If an elected official in a swing state who is Palestinian cannot make it on that stage, nobody else can,” she said.
Since the convention denied her the chance to express herself, here are the words she wanted to say:
“My story begins in a small village near Jerusalem, called Suba, where my dad’s family is from. My mom’s roots trace back to Al Khalil, or Hebron. My parents, born in Jordan, brought us to Georgia when I was eight, where I now live with my wonderful husband and our sweet pets.
“Growing up, my grandfather and I shared a special bond. He was my partner in mischief—whether it was sneaking me sweets from the bodega or slipping a $20 into my pocket with that familiar wink and smile. He was my rock, but he passed away a few years ago, never seeing Suba or any part of Palestine again. Not a day goes by that I don’t miss him.
“This past year has been especially hard. As we’ve been moral witnesses to the massacres in Gaza, I’ve thought of him, wondering if this was the pain he knew too well. When we watched Palestinians displaced from one end of the Gaza Strip to the other. I wanted to ask him how he found the strength to walk all those miles decades ago and leave everything behind.
“But in this pain, I’ve also witnessed something profound—a beautiful, multifaith, multiracial, and multigenerational coalition rising from despair within our Democratic Party. For 320 days, we’ve stood together, demanding to enforce our laws on friend and foe alike to reach a ceasefire, end the killing of Palestinians, free all the Israeli and Palestinian hostages, and to begin the difficult work of building a path to collective peace and safety. That’s why we are here—members of this Democratic Party committed to equal rights and dignity for all. What we do here echoes around the world.
“They’ll say this is how it’s always been, that nothing can change. But remember Fannie Lou Hamer—shunned for her courage, yet she paved the way for an integrated Democratic Party. Her legacy lives on, and it’s her example we follow.
“But we can’t do it alone. This historic moment is full of promise, but only if we stand together. Our party’s greatest strength has always been our ability to unite. Some see that as a weakness, but it’s time we flex that strength.
“Let’s commit to each other, to electing Vice President Harris and defeating Donald Trump who uses my identity as a Palestinian as a slur. Let’s fight for the policies long overdue—from restoring access to abortions to ensuring a living wage, to demanding an end to reckless war and a ceasefire in Gaza. To those who doubt us, to the cynics and the naysayers, I say, yes we can—yes we can be a Democratic Party that prioritizes funding our schools and hospitals, not for endless wars. That fights for an America that belongs to all of us—Black, brown, and white, Jews and Palestinians, all of us, like my grandfather taught me, together.”
Rep. Romman never was given the chance to say those words. Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic nomination for President and the convention ended with barely a mention of Gaza or the Palestinians. However, Harris did say during her acceptance speech:
“Let me be clear: I will always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself. Because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that the terrorist organization Hamas caused on October 7th. Including unspeakable sexual violence and the massacre of young people at a music festival.
“At the same time, what has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months is devastating. So many innocent lives lost. Desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety, over and over again. The scale of suffering is heartbreaking.
President Biden and I are working to end this war such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity. Security. Freedom. And self-determination.”
Meanwhile, it was reported today that a Palestinian baby in Gaza has been partly paralyzed from polio in the first case there in 25 years. Although preparations for a difficult and dangerous vaccination campaign have begun in the midst of the war, an outbreak of polio amidst all of the other suffering is unimaginably terrible.
A polio outbreak in Gaza won’t necessarily be confined to Palestinians. The nature of infectious diseases is such that they don’t recognize ethnicity, nationality, or religion. Israel and Israeli citizens are just as much at risk from a polio outbreak as are the Palestinians. If for no other reason than near-term self-preservation , this is a good reason for a ceasefire to begin immediately.
For the vaccination coverage to be sufficient, 95% of the children must receive two doses of the vaccine. Vials of the vaccine are expected to arrive in by air in Tel Aviv and then be driven to the Gaza Strip where they will be stored in a warehouse. The refrigeration equipment required to keep the vaccine at the right temperature has entered Gaza today.
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