Post-Conference Press Release
We have a live of the press conference up on our Facebook, and a higher quality HD video on YouTube (shown above). Our speakers' names, spelling, titles, and pronouns from the press conference were in the following order:
Kristina Beverlin (she/her) as MC
Rami Al-Kabra (he/him), a Palestinian Muslim-American elected official
Tacoma Councilmember Olgy Diaz (she/her)
UFCW 3000 President Faye Guenther (she/her)
Matt Weiner (he/him) and Chelsea Alvarez (she/her) from Jewish Voice for Peace Action
Serene Salam (she/her), a young Palestinian American college student from Bellingham
Amy Madden (she/they), a longtime Democratic organizer
Ahmed Mumin (he/him), a leader within the East African community
Rebekah Harris Liebermann (they/them), a Jewish member of Democratic Socialists of America
Sabrene Odeh (she/her), a young Palestinian Muslim American; and
Faheem Khan (he/him) from the American Muslim Advisory Council
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE; March 4, 2024
Uncommitted WA asks Washington voters to vote Uncommitted Delegates in the Presidential Primary on March 12 to send a Ceasefire Now, anti-war message to Biden
Uncommitted WA, a broad coalition that includes elected officials, Palestinian rights activists, Muslim community members, Jewish community members (including members of Jewish Voices for Peace Action), immigrant community members, local union members (including UFCW 3000, the largest labor union in Washington State), DSA members, Democratic Party organizers, faith leaders, anti-war activists, and community organizers held a press conference March 4 to ask Democratic voters in Washington State to vote Uncommitted Delegates in the presidential primaries before March 12, 2024.
The campaign’s goal is to send a message to President Biden that his support of Israel’s military action in Gaza goes against the values of the voters who helped him get elected.
“We have tried everything we can think of to get this message across,” said Faheem Khan, one of the lead organizers of Uncommitted WA. “We have tried to meet with our Congressional representatives to help put an end to all of this suffering. We have tried writing letters, sending emails and calling. Nothing has worked because even though polls show that 80% of Democrats want to see an immediate ceasefire, our elected leaders are not listening to us.”
Rami Al-Kabra, the only Palestinian-American elected official in Washington, said, “The most precious tool that we have to hold this President accountable for his harmful policies is our vote. Voting as a way to send a message to the President is the most American thing we can do.”
Michigan’s Primary vote last week had more than 100,000 Democrats voting “Uncommitted” instead of for President Biden. Minnesota has a similar push during their primaries that end this week. Washington organizers (where the option on the ballot is “Uncommitted Delegates”; a wording difference from other states) hope to add to the national momentum.
“This national show of solidarity to vote Uncommitted is a unified message to the President of the United States to call for a ceasefire as a means to end famine now, stop the deaths of innocent lives, allow all humanitarian aid and return of all hostages,” said King County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, who is supportive of this campaign. “Continuing to support the massacres we see daily should not be the priority of the President. Instead, it should be on standing up for humanity and giving us hope for global peace and democracy.”
Washington State has led in the ceasefire movement since hostilities escalated in 2023. Washington cities (Bothell, Seattle, Bellingham, and Olympia), counties (Jefferson County and San Juan County), local Democratic Organizations (the 1st Legislative District (LD) Democrats, the 32nd LD Democrats, the 44th LD Democrats, and the 43rd LD Democrats), as well as the Washington State Democratic Party, have all passed resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Thousands of Washington State citizens and more than 100 local organizations joined forces in mid-November, 2023 to call for a ceasefire.
State Senator Yasmin Trudeau (D-27) said, “My vote this presidential election will reflect commitment to my values, my culture, my faith, my friends, my family, and the people who have elected me to represent them. It is the voice I will use to push back on those who refuse to center the humanity of all people in their political calculations. That is why I will remain uncommitted to any democratic presidential candidate preselected and listed on the ballot this year. It remains my hope that there will be a Democratic leader that hears me and the many, many people just like me who are asking them to do the right thing and call for a ceasefire.”
Arab and Muslim voters, young voters, voters of color, disabled voters, and more turned out in record numbers to vote for Biden in 2020 and help him defeat Trump. Many of those same voters have spent the past five months participating in marches, rallies, and protests against Biden’s policies relating to Israel and Gaza.
“Biden must do better,” said Uncommitted WA. “We are asking people to vote ‘Uncommitted Delegates’ so that we can pressure the Biden Administration and current Democratic Party leaders to change their policies on Gaza and end their unconditional support of, and funding for, Israel’s military. This pressure is the most direct path to making Biden understand how important listening to his voter base is, since he cannot win again in November without us.”
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