The ongoing war between Israel-Hamas may seem a world away to some, but for many Palestinian Americans in Brooklyn, the conflict weighs heavy, including on their vote in the upcoming presidential election.
From Bay Ridge to Dyker Heights to Bensonhurst, neighborhoods that have a large Palestinian population, many residents have close ties to Gaza and the West Bank. The ongoing violence has influenced their daily lives here and their choice for the next president of the United States.
"All the presidents are liars," said Mahmoud Kassem, the owner of Al-Aqsa Bakery in Bay Ridge. "Everybody promises something. Obama was a liar. Biden promised a Palestinian state, but he became president and changed his mind."
Kassem last voted in 2008 for Barack Obama and has not voted since. He said he will not cast his vote this year either not only because of broken promises, but over the lack of consideration for Palestinians.
"They don't know our struggle," Kassem said, explaining he has to get through six checkpoints between the U.S., Jordan and Israel so he can visit family. "We're not equal over here. Money talks at the end of the day."
Similar sentiment has been heard in Arab-American communities nationwide. Since the start of the Israel-Hamas War, many have voiced their dismay with the U.S. government's lack of support for Palestine. In the months leading up to this year's election, many of these voters, began to rethink whether they should support any candidate at all.
Moustafa Bayoumi has seen this firsthand. An English professor at Brooklyn College, Bayoumi said he recently talked about Donald Trump and Kamala Harris at a conference in Dearborn, Mich., which has a large Arab-American population.
"There was a palpable disaffection for Kamala Harris and the Democrats, but also for Donald Trump and the Republicans," he said. "Panelist after panelist expressed the idea that they couldn’t vote for a genocide enabler. There was an overall feeling of anger and sadness that the two-party system does not work. It does not prevent mass slaughter, and it actively silences the legitimate concerns and voices of our people."
What was said in Dearborn is also being said in Brooklyn. Many Brooklynites who spoke to BKReader all expressed their disinterest in voting, or said they were likely to choose a third-party candidate.
Yusuf O., a college student from Bensonhurst, is among them. He said he has decided to vote for Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate, because she openly supports the Palestinian cause.
"We're not being represented," said Yusuf, who declined to give his last name. "Democrats say they're on your side but Israel has the right to defend itself. And Trump is giving [Netanyahu] the greenlight, saying keep going."
Bay Ridge resident, Feda, a graduate student, will also vote for Stein because she wants to punish the Democrats.
"I've traditionally always voted Democrat," said Feda, who also declined to disclose her last name. "The Democrats are currently sending bombs to kill my family and friends. And they're in office right now, not Republicans."
Pastor Khader Khalilia is not surprised about these decisions. The leader of Redeemer-St. John’s Lutheran Church in Dyker Heights, said he thinks most Arab Americans would select Stein, with Harris a distant second a few for Trump, and then otherwise not vote altogether.
Khalilia said he tells his community to do their civic duty because tax dollars go to those running the country, though he does not tell them who to vote for.
Even so, he has his own conflicts.
"I'm really struggling with the genocide," he said. "The current administration is complicit. Trump moved the embassy to Jerusalem. It will not change whoever wins."
Although other issues, such as inflation, climate change and the housing crisis also matter, Brooklyn residents were more focused on having their voice heard, not about the vote itself.
"A lot will be adding their own names or Free Palestine on the ballot," said Feda. "Just to send a message."
Kassem, a resident of bay Ridge, has lived in the U.S. since 1998 and called it "the best country in the world." And yet he is upset because Palestinians are overlooked.
"Stop the games," he said. "Stop the killings. Let us live free. Give us a state. What's the big deal?"
