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I wore a keffiyeh to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris to become the next President of the United States today. Most of my peers would and have vehemently disagreed with this decision, and I understand why.
Vice President Harris has angered me with her lack of active support for the Palestinian people and her inability to halt support for Israel’s continual genocide of them as well. Her mere words of support have been lacking significance and follow through, which is not good enough for my peers to warrant a vote. In her statement from Oct. 7 of this year to mark the one year anniversary of the Hamas attacks, she highlights her desire and efforts to release all the hostages held by Hamas and lists the American hostages by name. She then writes very definitively, “My commitment to the security of Israel is unwavering.” This is followed by a lack luster, thoughts-and-prayers style paragraph about the Palestinian people. She said she is “heartbroken” over the death and destruction, yet not once mentions the 9,440 Palestinian people (including children) that are still being held hostage by the Israel Prison Service (IPS), according to B’Tselem. She then calls for a ceasefire, which still has not come 13 months after the war began. Her words and actions are disappointing to someone who has unwavering support – financially and vocally – for the Palestinian people since October 2023. Yet, if a large proportion of Gen Z democrats chose to vote third party or not at all in this election to protest Vice President Harris’s confusing and illogical position on the war in Gaza, we might end up with a President Trump-backed Israel. This will be the worst outcome for the people in Gaza. A guaranteed American-backed genocide of the Palestinian people. Former president Donald Trump has vowed to crush pro-Palestinian protests on campuses, expel student demonstrators from the United States, and praise police departments that arrest and shut down demonstrations of free speech, according to the Washington Post. Trump’s campaign press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that when Trump is back in office, “Israel will once again be protected… terrorists will be hunted down, and the bloodshed will end.” Trump wants to financially support Israel in any way possible to destroy Hamas and to “do it quickly” he said. Trump has repeatedly declared support for Israel despite a contentious personal relationship with Prime Minister Netanyahu and has publicly urged Israel to “finish up your war” and to “get the job done.” Trump has also promised to not aid in the reconstruction of the Gaza strip, to cut off all aid to the Palestinian people, and to bar refugees from Gaza from entering the U.S., according to the Guardian. This is extremely concerning and are all reasons why a vote for Vice President Harris is more of a preventative measure and will ultimately be better for the Palestinian people. I am not happy or accepting by any means her rhetoric or plans to aid this conflict, but as someone who is anti-genocide and cares deeply about the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza strip, I had to vote for Vice President Harris. The alternatives were unacceptable. One, directly voting for a man who has vowed to censor and deport pro-Palestinian students and vowed to write a blank check to Israel to finish their war by any means. Two, indirectly voting that man into office by abstaining to vote. The alternatives were unacceptable. And while my peers may (and do) disagree with me and can call this virtue signaling, my decision to vote is just as sacred as theirs is not to. My call to the rest of my peers who support an end the the genocide in Gaza is to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, protest where you can, donate as you can to relief funds, and talk to your family and friends on a consistent basis about what is happening in Palestine. Donate to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund here.
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