President Biden appeared in New York City for a presidential campaign fundraiser on Thursday, March 28. Though he appeared alongside much more popular former presidents, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, the fundraiser could have gone better. Particularly, things got chaotic and awkward when he was interrupted by a pro-Palestine protester who yelled at him over his administration’s stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
As background, many on the left have become anti-Israel and pro-Palestine, viewing the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza through the lens of the “colonizer” and “oppressor” framework common on the left. Through that lens, Israel appears to them to be the “colonizer” committing war crimes, while the Gazans are an oppressed people suffering under the cruelties of that power. Most on the conservative right and older left disagree.
In any case, because of that framework, there are many people on the left who take issue with the Biden Administration’s generally supportive stance as regards the Israeli war effort, though its support of Israel has not been as full-throated as other administrations, as shown by its recent abstention during the UN Security Council’s ceasefire resolution vote.
That dislike of the Biden Administration’s general support of the Israeli government’s war effort, at least so far, could be seen during the Thursday night fundraiser. During the event, President Joe Biden began speaking about the January 6, 2021 riot. Instead of just receiving the usual smattering of applause for his comments about democracy, Biden suddenly received strong remarks from a pro-Palestine protester in the crowd.
That audience member stood up and started shouting, “Shame on you, Joe Biden! Shame on you! Shame on you! You are pushing genocide in Palestine and no amount of false concern–” Continuing, the protester, as she was forcibly escorted out of the venue, continued shouting at Biden, screaming, “There’s blood on your hands!”
Her antics weren’t the only pro-Palestine protest to occur during the event. At another point during the fundraiser, another protester interrupted things, standing up while waving a Palestinian flag and shouting, “Palestinians are dying right now because of your actions!” President Biden did have the military airdrop aid to the Palestinians, and is sending units to build a mobile pier to deliver food, though he is also aiding the Israeli war effort.
Watch the protester shout “shame on you” here:
Watch the Palestinian flag-waver yell at Biden here:
That wasn’t all. In addition to attracting protesters inside the venue, the Biden event attracted protesters outside the venue. Those pro-Palestine protesters waved Palestinian flags, waved around signs in which they demanded the United States stop providing immense amounts of aid to Israel, and chanted slogans like “Down with the USA!”
Watch them here;
Biden so far has attempted to walk a tightrope by providing aid to both sides and remaining in Israel’s corner but less full-throatedly in support of Israel than past presidents have been. It appears, however, based on these protests, that his equivocation has not appeased the pro-Palestine segment of his base of support, a potential problem in the 2024 election.
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