Why last week marked a turning point for Arab Americans

Palestinian supporters attend a rally in Manhattan, New York, in June. AFP

On November 29, the US city of Philadelphia officially celebrated the "International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People". Philadelphia's mayor, Jim Kenney, was the keynote speaker at the event that also featured remarks by three members of the city council, a state senator and a state representative. All spoke about the contributions that Palestinian Americans are making to the city and to America. There were Palestinian flags, music and maamoul dessert. And an official city proclamation was read, declaring solidarity with the Palestinian people.

It's normal for politicians to acknowledge the importance of, and demonstrate their support for, the many ethnic groups that make up their constituency. But this event was extraordinary for two important reasons: it marked a turning point in the broader Arab-American community's history, and this was about Palestinians.

To understand the significance of this event, it's important to recall an earlier, more painful time for the community in Philadelphia. In 1983, Wilson Goode, then candidate for mayor, attended an Arab-American fundraising event hosted by a prominent Philadelphia-based Palestinian American, Naim Ayoub. Mr Goode was engaging. In his remarks, he vowed to be "the mayor for all the people" of the city, which for those in attendance meant full recognition of the Arab-American community within the body politic.

Speaking at a synagogue the next day, John Egan, Mr Goode's opponent, denounced him for "taking money from Arabs" and accused him of being soft on Israel’s security. Instead of standing up to this bigoted assault, a headline in The Philadelphia Inquirer read: "Wilson Goode to Return Arab Money." And so, a few days later, those who had contributed at the event received envelopes with their returned cheques. To add insult to injury, Mr Goode decided to keep the cheque of only one of the attendees – a Jewish doctor, who happened to be Mr Ayoub's friend. Upon learning about how his cheque had been accepted, while the Arab-American cheques had been rejected, the doctor demanded that his contribution be returned, too.

For those caught up in the controversy, Mr Goode's response came as a shock and contrary to what he had just promised the Arab-American community. By some accounts, it was a humiliating moment and a sordid affair that was less about politics that it was about racism.

Mr Goode went on to win two terms as mayor and, despite its best efforts, never once did he meet with the Arab-American community.

Seven years later, Marwan Kreidie, one of the community's key activists in Philadelphia, organised a meeting with Ed Rendell, the Democratic candidate to succeed Mr Goode. Mr Kreidie had helped with voter registration efforts in the community – efforts that were spurred on by the political activist Jesse Jackson's presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988. He had formed a personal relationship with Mr Rendell who was Jewish and wasn't to be intimidated by his efforts to seek the support of Arab Americans.

Mr Rendell went on to win two terms as mayor and two terms as governor of the state of Pennsylvania. He appointed Arab Americans to local and statewide posts. This recognition and inclusion in politics, in turn, helped the community to grow in stature – all leading to last week's event.

Even with this growth and acceptance, the memories of past bigoted exclusion remained. They hung over the heads of many Arab Americans like a hammer waiting to fall. And so, when they learned of a letter sent to Mr Kenney, the current mayor, by the Israeli consul general urging him to reconsider his decision to headline and support the event, they recalled Mr Goode's cowardice and held their breath.

The consul general's letter was filled with inflammatory and outrageous charges against Palestinians. It spoke of anti-Semitism; charged Palestinians and their supporters with "endorsing the violent rejection of peaceful compromise"; and referred to the groups sponsoring the event as "not interested in anything other than demonising the Jewish state".

To the delight of many Arab Americans, neither the mayor nor the other elected officials backed away from the event. Nor did these officials withdraw the official proclamation. That's what made this event so remarkable.

An Israeli American, who is an editorial writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer, was at the event and wrote a delightful opinion piece for his paper. He noted how the early Zionist movement spoke of Palestine as a "land without a people"; how former Israeli prime minister Golda Meir had observed that "there is no such thing as a Palestinian people"; and how Newt Gingrich, the former Republican speaker of the US House of Representatives, had called Palestinians an "invented people". The op-ed concluded that the event was a "powerful break from a tired and offensive narrative" as it was "simply recognising the existence of a Palestinian identity and community – as the government does for so many ethnic and immigrant communities each year".

It shouldn't be too much to ask that Arab Americans be recognised and included as full members of the body politic, or that Palestinians have their humanity, identity and contributions affirmed. But it's taken the community a long time and plenty of pain and work to get to this point. That's why Arab Americans celebrate November 29 and thank all those who have struggled to get them here.