Rashida Tlaib, again with a courageous voice
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On November 7, 2023, Rashida Tlaib posted on X, saying, 'I will never be silent; you cannot erase my words.' Who is Rashida Tlaib? She is one of the three members of the US Congress of Palestinian descent. A courageous woman who strongly protested against Israel's nine-month-long hunt in Gaza both inside and outside the US Parliament. Rashida did not agree with the Hamas attack on October 7 and openly stated so. However, she made it clear that this cannot be used as an excuse to justify Israel's invasion and genocide in Gaza and the West Bank. She also reiterated that labelling criticism of the Israeli government as 'anti-Semitic' is dangerous and a ploy to suppress voices for human rights. Following a complaint filed by Republican Party members, and supporters of Donald Trump, alleging that this statement was anti-Semitic, the Speaker allowed a 'motion of censure' against Rashida in Parliament. A 'motion of censure' is introduced to inform a member if their words or actions have brought disrepute to the country and, if necessary, to hold a discussion and vote in the House. Although the Democrats were in power, the motion was passed in the House of Representatives, where the Republicans held a majority. In other words, the US Congress declared Rashida guilty. It was at this moment that she wrote the aforementioned words.
After a brief interval, Rashida has made headlines again. True to her word of not remaining silent, she led a major protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who arrived in the US on Wednesday. As soon as it was announced that Netanyahu would address a joint session of the US Congress, many Democratic Party members had come out in protest, demanding an arms embargo on Israel and an end to the attacks. They also boycotted Netanyahu's speech in the Congress. However, Rashida, a member of the same party, adopted a different protest strategy. When Netanyahu justified the Gaza invasion, saying, "This is also a fight for you," she raised a protest placard. On one side, it read "War Criminal," and on the other, "Guilty of Genocide." Hani Almadoun, a Palestinian youth invited by Rashida, was also present in the Congress’s visitors’ gallery. According to Rashida, 150 of Hani's relatives were killed in Gaza within nine months. She later said that many of Hani's relatives who survived the Israeli massacre were surviving by eating leaves and other things. It was a rare sight where, on the one hand, the mastermind of the massacre of nearly 40,000 innocent people was justifying himself, and on the other, a protest was organized in the same assembly, including by the victims.
In recent days, the world has applauded Rashid's unique and courageous voice. The question of why Rashid's voice stands alone has also arisen. The answer was the protest itself. While various ceasefire efforts were underway, mediated by the United States, Netanyahu's visit to the US should have been the ideal opportunity to realize this. However, Netanyahu attempted to involve the US in the killings, and the audience applauded. In a way, this is not surprising; consider the case of Rashid's "censure motion." The Republican Party has a nine-person majority in the House of Representatives. Naturally, the motion was expected to pass with a majority of about this number. However, Rashid was "censured" by a majority of 46 votes. In other words, it can be inferred that at least 35 Democrats were on Israel's side on this issue. When Trump was president, he had referred to Rashid as "evil" and "crazy." This was because she had spoken out against Trump's anti-immigration, Islamophobic policies, and pro-Israel bias. At that time, only immigrants like Ilhan Omar had supported Rashid. Mainstream Democrats, including Biden, had remained silent. Despite this neglect, Rashid continued to speak out. This voice will not be in vain. History bears witness to the fact that such small voices often turn into big tremors and revolutions.