 40 panelists, 9 sessions, 3 days, tens of thousands inspired Dear Supporter, Our 13th Annual Convention was one of our most successful online endeavors yet, with more than 1,400 online registrations and tens of thousands of views! Very befitting of our theme, Against All Odds, our wonderful team of staff, board members and chapters put together a program of more than 40 panelists discussing a wide range of topics, including the role of the Palestinian diaspora, US foreign policy, Jerusalem in the Islamic consciousness, global Muslim resistance to oppression, and Black-Palestinian liberation. These rich discussions will propel us forward and inform our 2021 strategy. If you missed any of our sessions, you can still check them out here!
We are thankful to all the panelists for their participation and thoughts on the trajectory of US foreign policy, among them Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and Congresswoman Betty McCollum. Colorado State Representative-Elect Iman Jodeh’s live message left us in tears as she recounted her family’s journey and her success. We are especially grateful to the panelists who joined us from overseas to speak to our community: Dr. Raed Fathi, Dr. Abdullah Marouf, Leila Wafi, Tareq Hammoud, Main Altaher, Hani Almasri and Hanadi Alhalawani. Our panel on Black-Palestinian liberation highlighted the importance of going beyond gestures of solidarity to standing firmly together as communities struggling against systems of oppression. African-American Muslim leader, Aisha Al-Adawiya, was honored by AMP Chairman Dr. Hatem Bazian for her bold and principled stance against the UAE’s normalization with Israel. In addition, the panel on global Muslim resistance to oppression, led by our very own Shakeel Syed, reiterated the fact that oppressive regimes and governments are learning from each other and enhancing each other’s ability to oppress. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us to be an equally assertive force for good and justice. We are seeing the dawn of a new horizon for Palestinian rights in the United States. Everything about this virtual convention signaled that reality. With leadership from both young and old, our organization and community are driving faster and more efficient change for justice in Palestine in this country. It is because of the generous support of our donors that we are able to continue this work and provide an address for the Palestinian diaspora in the US and for Palestine more broadly.
I want to personally thank our extraordinary staff who worked tirelessly to ensure the success of this program. They spent hours through the night and on weekends putting together everything from the program to marketing, fundraising to writing speeches, to production and communicating with panelists. Their dedication humbles me and makes me proud to be their Executive Director. With thanks,
Dr. Osama Abuirshaid
Executive Director
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