Michigan | Kamala Harris will have to regain the trust of the Arab electorate

(Dearborn) “We’re all ears,” but she has to be too: Democratic candidate Kamala Harris has the tough task of regaining the trust of voters from Arab and Middle Eastern countries who have been disappointed by Joe Biden’s unwavering support for Israel.

In Dearborn, a suburb of Detroit (Michigan) and a cultural hotspot for the American community of Arab origin, this electorate played a major role in helping Joe Biden win in 2020 in this key state, which will be just as important for the presidential election in November.

For Osama Siblani, owner of the newspaper The Arab American News who moved to Michigan from Lebanon in 1976, a door has been opened by Kamala Harris and her community is “all ears.”

The vice president, who replaced Joe Biden at short notice, promised Thursday to work for a ceasefire in Gaza, where Israel has been waging a deadly offensive for ten months in response to the bloody attack by Hamas on its soil on October 7.

While she reaffirmed her commitment to ensuring Israel’s “capacity to defend itself,” she also said she was in favor of allowing Palestinians to exercise their “right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination.”

The Uncommitted (“non-aligned”) National Movement, initiated in Michigan to oppose the war in Gaza and influence the Democratic Party on the issue, however strongly regretted not having been invited to the podium of the Democratic convention while pro-Palestinian demonstrations were held daily on the sidelines of the party’s grand mass.

The group “Muslim Women for Harris-Walz” has decided to end its support campaign for this reason.

Growing influence

As the home of the American auto industry, Michigan has always been an important stopover for White House candidates.

Abandoned by a section of the local population due to the economic difficulties of the 1970s, the state saw the arrival of several waves of Lebanese, Yemeni, Iraqi and Palestinian immigrants fleeing the unrest in their country.

“About 55 percent of our city’s residents are from Arab countries,” said Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud. “For many of us, when we talk about what’s happening in Gaza, it’s about our families and our friends,” he said.

When Osama Siblani launched his newspaper in the mid-1980s, the mayor at the time was campaigning against “the Arab problem”. But as the community expanded into all spheres of society, including the highest, it gained political influence.

Originally a conservative, she had largely supported George W. Bush in the 2000 presidential election. But the “war on terror” led by the latter after the September 11 attacks made her switch to the Democratic side.

In 2018, southeast Michigan elected Rashida Tlaib, the first woman of Palestinian descent to the House of Representatives. Three mayors from Arab countries have also recently been elected in suburbs known for their racist pasts.

Tired of “crumbs”

Dissatisfied with Donald Trump’s “Muslim ban”, a set of prohibitions or restrictions on entry into the United States targeting mainly Muslim-majority countries, but also with his support for Israel’s colonization of Palestinian territories, the Arab community of Dearborn massively supported Joe Biden in 2020.

The latter’s unwavering support for Israel in its war in Gaza was therefore a cold shower for many, “tired of voting to avoid the worst.”

At her rally in Detroit in early August, Harris was interrupted by pro-Palestinian activists shouting, “We will not vote for genocide!” “If you want Donald Trump to win, keep saying that,” she responded.

“We don’t want to settle for crumbs anymore,” laments Soujoud Hamade, a business lawyer who is considering voting for the small green party if the vice-president is disappointed in her campaign.

Kamala Harris has a “window of opportunity,” says Faye Nemer, an activist and director of the Middle East and North Africa-U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

“She can take up Joe Biden’s legacy or set her own agenda.”