Abdul El-Sayed’s victorious path to the US Senate must become a wake-up call to the Democratic party. It shows us, yet again, that Democratic voters care about Gaza, that Palestinian demands for freedom are increasingly connected to American demands for freedom, and that the old smears and accusations against Palestinians and their supporters are fast losing potency.

Even Donald Trump has acknowledged that support for Israel is increasingly a political liability in American politics. Will Chuck Schumer and the rest of the Democratic leadership listen?

El-Sayed ran a hard-fought and disciplined campaign that focused on issues which spoke to Michiganders. “Money out of politics, money in your pocket, Medicare for all” was the campaign’s signature slogan. But from the outset, the vilest Islamophobic and racist attacks, some of the worst that that we’ve seen in years, were constantly pelted at the candidate, in large part because of his outspoken support for Palestinians.

Over the last few months, Trump obsessively called him a jihadist and a terrorist sympathizer while mocking his name or referring to him by his middle name of Mohamed. “I will be Senator Mohamed to you, bro,” El-Sayed clapped back.

During the final televised debate between Michigan’s Senate candidates, Republican Mike Rogers asked El-Sayed: “Are you for America, or are you for these terrorist groups overseas?”

After calling the question “shameful”, which it absolutely was, El-Sayed responded with: “I’m proud of our constitution that guarantees all of us the right........

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