CHICAGO — The uncommitted delegates to the Democratic National Convention announced Wednesday night that their chief request was denied by Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign — to have a Palestinian American speak to the convention here.
The delegates, who were elected in Democratic primaries this year in protest of President Joe Biden’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza, have been signaling that they would commit to Harris if a Palestinian American was allowed to address the convention.
“I’ve been waiting for a call,” said Abbas Alawieh, a Michigan delegate and former congressional chief of staff who has acted as spokesperson of the delegates, holding up his cellphone as a prop. “They weren’t getting back to us, they weren’t getting back us, they weren’t getting back to us.”
Then, Alawieh said, a call came in Wednesday evening from an official he did not identify.
“The call said, ‘Abbas, the answer is no,’” he said.
The Harris campaign and convention organizers said they engaged with uncommitted delegates and other members of the Muslim and Arab community over the past several months, which led uncommitted delegates to say they were “encouraged” by the signals.
Harris campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez, traveled to Michigan this week to meet local Arab leaders, and the campaign said she and Democratic National Committee senior staff have held meetings with Uncommitted leaders in recent days.
At the convention, the DNC provided space for a panel discussion Monday on Palestinian issues — as well as one with Jewish leaders on antisemitism — and noted they provided credentials and space for the Uncommitted delegates and their staff.
Organizers also noted that multiple speakers addressed the suffering of Palestinian civilians and that the Democratic Party platform calls for a lasting peace with a two-state solution.
The campaign declined to comment on the record.
There are only 30 uncommitted delegates out of nearly 4,700 gathered in the United Center, though they said that an additional 250 Harris delegates signed a letter supporting their demand for a cease-fire and an arms embargo on Israel.
Still, their representation is a fraction of the total convention attendance — and far smaller group than the Bernie Sanders delegates at the 2016 Democratic convention, when nearly 40% of delegates were elected to support the independent senator from Vermont.
In twice-daily press conferences all week, the Uncommitted delegates have been reiterating their request for a few minutes on the convention stage, insisting they were willing to work with organizers on preparing remarks and selecting a mutually acceptable speaker.
The decision could mark an inflection point for the delegates, who have so far kept their distance from the protesters outside the secure area and the occasional disruptions by non-delegate protesters inside the arena.
The parents of an Israeli hostage held by Hamas spoke earlier Wednesday at the convention and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., the first Palestinian American woman to serve in Congress, saw a double standard.
“DNC: Why are you saying that Israeli children are more valuable than Palestinian children?” she wrote on X. “Where is our shared humanity? Stop erasing Palestinians. We exist. We deserve to be heard.”
The delegates huddled together in a tearful embrace before announcing the news.
Now, they say they plan to sit outside the convention hall in the hope that organizers change their minds.
“President Biden, I have a message to you. The next time I see you give a salute, the next time you put your hand over your heart, I will see nothing but the blood of Palestinian children on your hand,” said Kaz Kader, a Washington Uncommitted Delegate. “Vice President Harris, you have watched his hand choke the Palestinian children. And you are a witness. Both of you are a disgrace.”