Layla Elabed’s mom was in the West Bank when Israel’s aggression in Gaza began in October.
“I never watched Al Jazeera more in my life than I did during that time, because I was so worried for my mom,” Elabed reflected. “I was so worried for my family.”
Her mom was able to flee. But Elabed’s struggle did not end once her mom reached safety.
“We know that our existence is our resistance, and we will continue to fight for the self-determination of Palestinians.”
Elabed is the campaign manager of Listen to Michigan, a new campaign to use voting power to pressure policymakers to call for a ceasefire. They have a clear message: vote “uncommitted” during Michigan's February primary rather than support incumbent President Joe Biden.
“We have political power that we can leverage to get a ceasefire and hopefully save lives,” Elabed said.
Abbas Alawieh, the political strategist and spokesman for Listen to Michigan, said that protesting and calling legislators hasn’t changed any of Biden’s policies. He hopes this new approach will make clear that there are political consequences to the Biden administration's support of Israel’s siege.
“Since it feels like [Biden] has not heard us yet, what we feel like we need to do is make sure to get his attention,” Alawieh said. “Here in Michigan, we're going to vote ‘uncommitted’ on February 27th, ‘uncommitted’ for ceasefire, for peace, and against the funding of war.”
Applying this kind of political strategy isn’t anything new to Alawieh. He was on the steps of the Capitol, he said, advocating for the extension of the national eviction moratorium in the summer of 2021. Congresswoman Cori Bush led a protest that lasted five days, and resulted in the Biden Administration issuing a new moratorium.
“What was absent there that was necessary to save lives and keep 11 million housed was political will. At the time, President Biden didn't find it on his own. Because of our pressure, he found it,” Alawieh said. “We're trying to do something similar here.”
While the campaign is led by Arab Americans, Palestinian Americans, and Muslim Americans, organizers said that there are also Jewish Americans and other young voters “united under the banner of ceasefire now.”
“This [campaign] is multigenerational, multicultural, multiracial, multi-faith, because it is a message that can resonate across party lines,” Elabed said. “We can all agree that we believe in humanity. We believe in saving human lives, and we believe that a permanent ceasefire is the avenue and the vehicle in order to save lives in Gaza and save the lives of Palestinians.”
Listen to Michigan is focused on the immediate goal of applying political pressure on the Biden Administration to change its course on foreign policy. For many, supporting Biden in the November presidential election if he’s nominated by the Democratic Party isn’t even a question yet.
“What we can say right now. . . is that we need to have the bare minimum of a permanent ceasefire, and a reevaluation of our policy that funds military aid that is used to bomb children, bomb families, men, women,” Elabed said. “Before. . . those initiatives happen, we can't even talk about what support in November can look like for President Joe Biden.”
GUESTS ON THIS EPISODE:
- Layla Elabed, campaign manager for Listen to Michigan
- Abbas Alawieh, political strategist and spokesman for Listen to Michigan
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