Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib hit back at her colleagues who voted in favor of censuring her on Tuesday night after she embraced the controversial Pro-Hamas chant: ‘From the river to the sea.’
‘I will not be silenced and I will not let you distort my words. No government is beyond criticism,’ the Michigan congresswoman said moments after 22 of Democratic colleagues crossed the floor, paving the way for the motion.
‘The idea that criticizing the government of Israel is anti-Semitic sets a very dangerous precedent, and it’s been used to silence diverse voices speaking up for human rights across our nation,’ Tlaib added.
Since Hamas‘ barbaric invasion of Israel on October 7, Tlaib has made headlines for her incendiary remarks remarks condemning Israel following the attacks on October 7 that killed 1,400 people.
One Georgia Republican alleged that Tlaib had engaged in spreading ‘unbelievable falsehoods about America’s greatest ally.’
The Squad member is the only Palestinian-American member of Congress and has been heavily critical of both the Biden administration and Israel during the war.
While the censure of a lawmaker carries no practical effect, it amounts to severe reproach from colleagues, as lawmakers who are censured are usually asked to stand in the well of the House as the censure resolution against them is read aloud.
Prior to the censure vote, Rep. Tlaib was forced on to the periphery of a bipartisan candlelight vigil to commemorate on month since the start of the violence in Israel
Tlaib with fellow squad member Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri during the vigil
Twenty-two Democrats joined Republicans to condemn the progressive Michigan lawmaker in a stunning rebuke of her controversial statements on the conflict in the Middle East
Tlaib accused her colleagues of trying to silence her in a defiant speech on the House floor on Tuesday afternoon
Tlaib has also been criticized by the White House and members of her own party for using the pro-Palestinian chant ‘from the river to the sea’
Tlaib has also been criticized by the White House and members of her own party for using the pro-Palestinian chant ‘from the river to the sea’, which many consider to be an anti-Semitic call for the destruction of Israel.
She even accused Biden of supporting ‘genocide’ in Gaza and ‘complicity’ in the deaths of children in the Middle East.
Rep. Brad Schneider, one of the Democrats who voted to censure Tlaib, said she had ‘repeatedly insisted on using inflammatory language that dangerously amplifies Hamas propaganda and disinformation’.
She choked up and accused her colleagues of trying to silence her in a defiant speech on the House floor on Tuesday afternoon.
‘My perspective is needed here now more than ever. I will not be silenced and I will not let you distort my words,’ she said in a passionate speech.
‘There are millions of people across our country who do not support Netanyahu’s extremism and are sick of watching our country support collective punishment,’ she went on.
‘My criticism has always been of the Israeli government,’ said Tlaib. ‘The idea that criticizing the Israeli government is antisemitic sets a dangerous precedent.’
‘I can’t believe I have to say this but Palestinian people are not disposable. We are human beings.
‘Just like my grandmother, like all Palestinians, who just wants to live her life with the freedom and human dignity we all deserve,’ Tlaib went on, holding up a photo of her grandmother who lives in the Palestinian territory.
Republican Rep. Rich McCormick of Georgia pushed the censure measure in response to what he called Tlaib’s promotion of anti-Semitic rhetoric.
He said she has ‘levied unbelievable falsehoods about our greatest ally, Israel’.
Democrats stood by Tlaib, but she was scrutinized for not immediately condemning Hamas after the atrocities of October 7.
On Sunday , she accused President Biden of ‘complicity of the deaths of children and claimed he was supporting ‘genocide’ in Gaza.
‘Your silence is deafening. Your complicity is even worse,’ Tlaib wrote of Biden. ‘A whole generation of children is being wiped out in front of us.
Pro-Palestinian Tlaib also accused Biden of genocide and demanded a ceasefire as she threatened electoral consequences in 2024
Republican Rep. Rich McCormick of Georgia pushed the censure measure in response to what he called Tlaib’s promotion of anti-Semitic rhetoric
McCormick’s resolution called out Tlaib for ‘continuing to knowingly spread the false narrative that Israel intentionally bombed’ a hospital in Gaza.
Israeli intelligence claimed the hospital explosion, that killed dozens, was caused by a Hamas rocket misfire.
It also called out a video Tlaib posted that featured a chant often used by Palestinian militants: ‘from the river to the sea.’
The chant is widely used by those who do not believe Israel has a right to exist.
‘[Biden], the majority of the American people are not with you on this one. #CeasefireNow,’ Tlaib wrote on Twitter along with the clip.
Later Tlaib claimed on Twitter the phrase was not used to promote violence.
Florida Republican Rep. Brian Mast compared Palestinians to Nazis and said ‘very few’ of them are innocent in a wild tirade on the House floor. Democrats are now pushing to censure him
‘From the river to the sea is an aspirational call for freedom, human rights, and peaceful coexistence, not death, destruction, or hate,’ she wrote on Twitter on Friday.
The resolution also mentioned Tlaib’s October 8 statement after the Hamas attack on Israel, which she referred to as ‘resistance.’
The statement read: ‘I grieve the Palestinian and Israeli lives lost yesterday, today, and every day. I am determined as ever to fight for a just future where everyone can live in peace, without fear and with true freedom, equal rights, and human dignity. The path to that future must include lifting the blockade, ending the occupation, and dismantling the apartheid system that creates the suffocating, dehumanizing conditions that can lead to resistance.’