The letter comes as polling within the Muslim American community shows a major departure from the Democratic Party over the Biden-Harris administration’s unfettered support for Israel’s war on Gaza, which they along with rights groups and legal experts view is a genocide against Palestinians.
The letter calls on Muslims to instead vote for any of the third-party candidates, including the Green Party’s Jill Stein whose support has swelled among the Muslim American community in recent weeks.
“We want to be absolutely clear: don’t stay home and skip voting. This year, make a statement by voting third party for the presidential ticket,” the letter said.
“Equally important, vote all the way down the ballot for candidates and policies that stand for truth and justice, ensuring your voice is heard at every level.”
The letter, written and released in collaboration with the Abandon Harris campaign, was signed by more than three dozen religious leaders from all around the country, including Dawud Walid, Dr Shadee Elmasry, Imam Omar Suleiman, Dr Yasir Qadhi, and Imam Tom Facchine.
The imams who have signed the letter say the calls for Muslims to uncritically support Harris is fear-mongering.
“None of this is an endorsement of Donald Trump’s vile, racist agenda, which includes advancing the apartheid and genocidal interests of a foreign state while falsely claiming to put America first,” the letter said.
The Uncommitted Campaign, a movement that gained media attention for its call to withhold votes from President Biden during the primary elections over the war on Gaza, released a statement earlier this month saying that while it could not officially endorse Harris, voters should not cast their ballot for any other candidate but her.
How’s that not an offical endorsement?
I mean I guess it leaves open the option of not voting.
I guess it could be interpreted like that if someone want it very much, in such case why they didn’t said it straight: do what you want.
It’s indirect support, but weaker than a straight up endorsement.
They don’t like her but can admit the current alternative will be much more terrible. They do not want to endorse a “lesser evil.” Option A will hurt, option B is likely to take a limb.
Endorsement means you like them. This makes it clear they do not.
No, it do not mean liking something. Endorsement is an act of acceptation and/or support. Saying “voters should not cast their ballot for any other candidate but her” is an explicit endorsement.
Except that the people saying this are making a distinction between the two. Do you want to interpret what they are trying to say or do you wanna play word games? Disingenuous.
Yeah sure, they want to eat cake and still have it. That’s a gutter level sophistry nobody would ever eat except people wanting hard to believe it like you. And you call me disingenous, lol.
Also that cake is shit with poison topping, so bon apetit.
How in the world does the original statement not count as disingenuous word games to avoid saying “we support blue genocide”?
By specifically acknowledging that no matter the choice, the genocide will continue and purposely putting that concept at the front while also acknowledging between the two options, one will be better than the other. I mean, your currently providing GDP toward genocide. If it was so all encompassingly important to you, you would be more radical than to argue on Lemmy. Put your life on the line soldier, or accept that there is only so much us western haters of genocide can do in this specific case at this specific point in time.
You see communists on lemmy argue constantly that political action can and must extend far past voting, this isn’t the own you think it is, though your position of “Oh, you think genocide is unacceptable? Go die for it while I do nothing” has been noted as your not at all convenient conservative position.
Them palastinians will sure appreciate your direct action of not voting. That’ll fix them right up.
deleted by creator
I wonder why? Isn’t that curious.
Great question. I am mostly to blame because they are mentioned in the original article somewhere in the middle. I just didn’t paste in the entire article. It’s very long so I had to do some cutting after pasting 6 lines.
It comes after an umbrella group of major Muslim groups in the US released a similar call urging members to vote third-party, whether it be for Stein, Dr Cornel West, the Party for Socialism and Liberation’s Claudia De la Cruz, or the Libertarian Party’s Chase Oliver.
Jill Stein has made the genocide her main campaign point. Her platform also is not very "radical’. She mostly offers everything Democrats are asking for. Universal healthcare, ranked choice voting etc. For implementing rcv to escape the duopoly she is imo the best ‘compromise candidate’.
It also helps that realistically only the Greens have the ballot access and infrastructure to make winning possible. A bit difficult to advocate for a candidate who literally cannot win.
Incoming hatred of Muslims coming from liberals in 3, 2, 1…
🌎🧑🚀🔫🧑🚀
Oh, of course, but expect similar to what happened with “Bernie bros” after Hillary’s loss in 2016 to happen to muslim-Americans in 2024 if Harris loses.
Queue these comments in a minute:
Always happens.
Democrats do that also, they’re just not as honest about it as republicans. When Obama left office, he gave a parting gift of 38 billion dollars for Israel’s defense defense.
The white conservatives aren’t friends of the Negro either, but they at least don’t try to hide it. They are like wolves; they show their teeth in a snarl that keeps the Negro always aware of where he stands with them. But the white liberals are foxes, who also show their teeth to the Negro but pretend that they are smiling. The white liberals are more dangerous than the conservatives; they lure the Negro, and as the Negro runs from the growling wolf, he flees into the open jaws of the “smiling” fox.
- Malcolm X
For them the choice is between do they endorse the president who kills and bombs Palestinians or they don’t.
It is not between Kamala Harris or Donald Trump. Even they know none of the choices can or will lead to less violence in the middle east.
Even they know none of the choices can or will lead to less violence in the middle east.
Ah, but one choice will definitely lead to more.
And by not voting, statistics show, you favour that more-genocide candidate.
Good job.
What more genocide than complete and indiscriminate annihilation of people. Using terrorist tactics to kill, maim your opponents. This will carry on or escalate irrespective of either candidate.
Only thing worse would be Israel using nukes, which is independent of the US President.
The only group of people it is going to make any difference to, are the Americans.
Ah, but one choice will definitely lead to more.
You sure? Biden went against the DoD and approved the invasion of Lebanon, triggered the Iranian retaliation by lying about a ceasefire, and sent in US infantry and air support.
Removed by mod
Single issue voters and third party voters have always existed, and always will. If your political strategy is to blame them when you lose, you deserve to lose. Make a halfway decent campaign strategy. Or don’t.
Kamala knew how to get their votes, and she decided to support the continued violence instead. Maybe she had good reasons, maybe not, but it was a clear calculation and choice. Why would you insult her intelligence? Why would you undercut her campaign so close to election day? How dare you endorse Trump!
Removed by mod
continues a policy you dont agree with
Reducing genocide to a simple policy that can be agreed or disagreed with is monstrous.
everything the governments dois a ‘policy’. just ask them
It’s genocide, you framed it as a choice to be agreed with or not, and not as a cruel act of inhumanity.
my policy is that you should be shot, but i’m gonna need you to ignore that and support me anyway.
it’s just a policy.
Calling the majority of Muslim-American voters and Palestinians “kids” is wildly racist and condescending.
so you openly deny you are a CHILD of allah? pretender
I’m not Muslim. Never claimed to be.
Removed by mod
nobody said anything about biden being a vile racist. if that id your thought of him then it is you that is the shit you name. self righteousness is its own curse
nobody said anything about biden being a vile racist
Because none of the people you listen to actually give a shit about racism
It’s like the dumbest version of the trolley problem where the tracks are reversed. You could do nothing and people will die. Or you could pull the lever (convince a bunch of people not to vote for Harris) and a lot more people will die but, hey, at least you can say you did something.
In terms of a bipoloar two party system, you’re right, the other party will fuck them hard.
In terms of swaying their main party to listen to their voters or risk losing an election, they did the right thing. You have to make a stand at some point to hold your representatives accountable.
I used to think the best time to do this was once your party was in power, but through sheer osmosis of being on this instance, I’m now of the mind that once they’re in power they will have no reason to listen to you, so you might as well strike when their victory is uncertain.
In terms of a bipoloar two party system, you’re right, the other party will fuck them hard.
This is the stage we’re on. The stage where we fix the problems in the ruling party come with protests; but only if we still have democracy and free assembly.
so you might as well strike when their victory is uncertain.
… and ensure you lose.
“Cut off the nose to spite the face”, they say.
Perhaps better to cut it off now, than for it to slowly rot from neglect.
In terms of swaying their main party to listen to their voters or risk losing an election, they did the right thing. You have to make a stand at some point to hold your representatives accountable.
Yeah, they do. You know when that point is? It’s during the motherfucking primary, not the general election!
I sure wonder why they didn’t vote for the anti-genocide candidate during the highly-contested primary.
they did do that during the primary, and their concerns were ignored. now the chickens are coming home to roost! I truly hope the strategy of eagerly telling everyone to the left to the party to fuck off works out, but I’m not very confident tbh
they did do that during the primary, and their concerns were ignored.
That’s called “losing”.
Now’s the time for those people to suck it up, put on their big kid pants, hold their noses, and not fucking help usher in a fascist dictatorship.
The one bringing about the fascist dictatorship is the genocide enthusiast at the helm right now. Alienating voters by being a genocidal monster is on the genocidal monster.
like I said, hope this strategy works out for you! I’m not confident it will, but I guess we will see.
Let’s run with your hypothetical. Let’s follow it to the logical conclusion… The election is going to come down to swing states, and the only voters that could possibly affect the result are the Muslim voters mentioned above. Magically, nobody else exists or matters. Don’t worry about how. If they vote third party, Trump wins, and it’s all their fault… That’s your scenario.
Except wait. Today isn’t Election Day. Harris could do a 180 on her stance this evening. She has the ability to act now to change the future, to get those precious votes, the only votes that matter. But for some reason, she really doesn’t do it, she doesn’t care… And that’s the problem your hypothetical has.
In reality, her campaign staff made their own choices, and they still have the power to adjust course if they feel like it. Or not. Whatever they like. But somehow you think it’s the Muslim voters who are in control here.
and a lot more people will die
Biden is sending in US troops and air support, approved the invasion of Lebanon despite the DoD and Pentagon disapproving, and triggered the Iranian retaliation by lying about a ceasefire. Both the DNC and GOP are genocidal monsters, trying to pretend Trump would somehow be a lot worse than Biden already has been is nonsensical. Both are evil.
In the great words of Terrence Howard, an action times an action equals a reaction.
I guess maybe America can’t mess up the Middle East any worse if it’s busy fighting a civil war.
deleted by creator
So they want Trump to be president. Got it.
Nope, they don’t want either and both have promised genocide. Do you stand for or against genocide?
That’s you trying to blame someone other than yourself. You knew what could happen. You could have volunteered more. You could have donated more. But none of that matters compared with finding a scapegoat.
Removed by mod
you did the meme! 🥳
luv 2 sneer at minorities being genocided when those minorities wouldn’t vote for someone killing their family. Seems like a cool thing for an Ally and Progressive to do.
don’t worry! nobody ever expected your worthless ass to lift a finger. everyone immediately understands upon meeting you that you are a gutless coward who stands for nothing.
Called it, the anti-Muslim hatred from liberals is already here, and they haven’t even lost yet.
As if you would had they endorsed Harris.
Great win! Taking votes away from kamala surely teaches Donald a lesson
President Donald Trump and the republican party who are currently running the government are going to learn that their poor foreign policy has electoral consequences.
Everyone should vote for his opponent, Kamala Harris, who is in no shape or form part of the current government. This will show current President Donald Trump and his republican party that they have crossed a red line which nobody will vote for.
Actually this is a nazi talking point and you should feel bad
I’d love to see an explanation for that one.
Arab americans are sick of having their homelands bombed by democrats. The Obama administration for example dropped an average of 60 bombs per day on the middle east and north africa during his presidency.
Let’s not even attempt to pretend like republicans are not also responsible, because… ?
What do you think her opponent would do if elected? Pick the lesser evil, damn.
Why isn’t there an option to give these Muslim Americans what they actually want?
The two party system coupled with first past the post voting, gerrymandering, and corporate interests really fuck over the actual will of the people.
Removed by mod
Let’s backtrack a bit. Why don’t they get a candidate that won’t kill their families for the laughs?
Who started the modern day shit storm in the Middle East? The GOP and the Bush family. You also need to ask the Saudis and Israelis and their involvement to persuade the US politicians into dropping bombs. Do you really think the Christian based Project 2025 will benefit Muslim Americans? Hell no, the GOP will turn the USA into a Christian version of 1979 Iran.
