Jewish, Arab American Michigan residents weigh in over Kamala Harris' DNC remarks on Gaza
(CBS DETROIT) — Arab Americans and Jewish Americans in Michigan are reacting to Vice President Kamala Harris' remarks on the war in Gaza.
As she accepted the Democratic nomination for president, she talked about the war for roughly four minutes. During her speech on Thursday, the last day of the Democratic National Convention, she took a stance on the crisis. Harris indicated that she stands with President Joe Biden on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
"Now is the time to get a hostage deal and a ceasefire deal done," Harris said in her speech. "The people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on Oct. 7."
She also said what has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months is "devastating."
"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," she said.
The remarks did not necessarily sit well with Arab American leaders in Michigan. Imad Hamad, the executive director of the American Human Rights Council was part of the Abandon Biden movement, which wanted voters to turn away from Biden and vote uncommitted. He said that since Biden has dropped out of the race and Harris is the nominee, they are undecided about who they will vote for.
"She didn't say anything new. She did not say something we did not expect. It is very unfortunate. Simply, we are looking for something of substance, not just empty words of sympathy," Hamad said. "I think we are still debating, we still are exploring, we still are assessing we have not reached a final decision yet."
CBS News Detroit reached out to Jewish Leaders in the state and received the following statement from state Sen. Jeremy Moss:
"Vice President Harris' remarks reflect the mainstream view in the Democratic Party: the hostages must be released, Hamas must be defeated, aid must flow to innocent Palestinians, and violence must de-escalate. The overwhelming majority of American Jewish voters believe that both Israel has a right to defend itself from terrorism and Palestinians have a right to self-determination in a peace-seeking state. Her speech struck all the right chords to win the election and manage this crisis."
