Palestine did cost the Democrats the election, though not how some imagine. In Palestine’s fate millions finally understood their calls for change would remain unanswered. In this, Palestine revealed the malaise and dissonance of the American empire.
The Gaza genocide has revealed the role of liberalism in upholding the brutality of the West. On the eve of U.S. elections, the question remains: what comes next for those wanting to build a new world?
The heart of the American liberal aches for fairness in all things yet responds to every invocation of Palestinian freedom with excuses. Luckily, progress has never relied on a liberal’s courage to recognize that change is necessary.
Many progressives in the Democratic Party have been celebrating the “return to normalcy” in US foreign policy represented by President Biden’s electoral win. This ignores the robust bipartisan consensus under both Democratic and Republican predecessors that laid the foundation for Trump’s openly hostile policies toward the Palestinians. It is this contradiction that lies at the heart of Marc Lamont Hill and Mitchell Plitnick’s new book, “Except for Palestine: The Limits of Progressive Politics”.