John,

The Biden administration just admitted Israel into the U.S. Visa Waiver Program. The Visa Waiver Program requires that all U.S. citizens are treated equally, but the far-right Israeli government routinely mistreats and detains American citizens at its points of entry, discriminating against Palestinian, Middle Eastern, North African, Muslim, and pro-Palestinian Americans.

After hearing the news about the Visa Waiver Program, American journalist Yumna Patel tweeted: “I found out about this news as I, an American citizen, sit in a waiting room at the Israeli border after being interrogated on my pregnancy status, and harassed & threatened after I complained about the prying questions.”

I led a congressional letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, arguing that this disparate treatment at Israel’s points of entry make it ineligible for inclusion in the Visa Waiver Program.

As the only Palestinian American in Congress, I will continue to fight against all forms of discrimination—including disparate treatment based on ethnicity, national origin, or faith. Will you support my leadership on human rights with a contribution today?

Israel’s government even blocked me and Congresswoman Ilhan Omar from entering the country in 2019.

Unless the Israeli government ends all ethnically, racially, religiously, and politically based discrimination against American citizens at its borders, it is ineligible for the Visa Waiver Program.

Unfortunately, this decision by the Biden administration enables further racist practices and violence towards Americans—including the murder of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, for which the United States has yet to hold the Israeli government accountable.

I will keep fighting for Palestinian Americans and Palestinians, who are being denied basic rights. I will continue to advocate for Arab Americans and people of all backgrounds, especially people who are facing oppression. No one should be discriminated against due to their national origin, ethnicity, or faith.

In the midst of U.S. lawmakers’ escalating attempts to criminalize and silence Americans who speak out against the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians, I will continue to speak up for our right to voice dissent and to criticize governments.

I won’t stop advocating for Palestinian liberation even when it makes me a target. I support people fighting oppression everywhere. Please chip in now to support my leadership in Congress to build a world where we can all be free.

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Together, we’re growing the U.S. movement for Palestinian liberation, building the power we need to hold Israel’s government accountable for perpetuating apartheid.

In solidarity,

Rashida