DNC 2024: Democrats reject Palestinian speaker, attendees cover ears when hearing names of Gaza victims

The Democratic National Committee rejected a call to have a Palestinian speaker on the main stage of their convention, after providing time to the relative of an Israeli hostage to speak on Wednesday evening.

The call to feature a Palestinian speaker had been made by the Uncommitted Movement, a group of activists and Democratic operatives who initially withheld from voting for Joe Biden in the primary elections over his support for the war on Gaza.

Since Biden dropped out, the Uncommitted Movement has called on Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and impose an arms embargo on Israel, but the group continues to support Harris for the upcoming US presidential election in November.

Earlier this week, the Uncommitted Movement held a panel on Palestinian human rights on the sidelines of the convention.

After receiving news of the rejection, members of the Uncommitted Movement and other democratic delegates joined a small protest outside the United Center, where the convention was being held.

However, the DNC's rejection and subsequent protest highlighted fissures in the broader pro-Palestinian protests taking place in Chicago. The Uncommitted Movement has distanced itself from the protests outside the convention, noting that it wants to operate within the Democratic Party system.

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