Today on Word on the Street Live, I sat down with my good friend Hady Amr, former US Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs and someone who’s spent decades working across diplomacy, policy and political organizing.
The bulk of our conversation revolved around why Democratic and Republican leaders need to stop treating Palestinians as an afterthought, and what it would actually take to shift toward a more serious, partner-based approach. Hady shared insights from his time in government on what needs to change, and where the biggest obstacles remain.
We touched on the leadership and legitimacy of the Palestinian Authority, the impact of the Israeli government’s devastation of Gaza on Arab and Muslim American politics, and the growing challenges of building coalitions in the US.
One part of the conversation I don’t want you to skip over: We talked about the troubling history of senior American leaders – most recently Trump’s former Ambassador to Israel David Friedman – targeting Arab and Muslim American officials, where identity itself is treated as suspect. We also spoke about the tremendous progress Arab and Muslim Americans have made in being represented and serving in government.
If you want to go deeper on Hady’s work, I recommend his latest piece here, and you can follow him at @HadyAmr on Twitter.
