{"id":4902,"date":"2021-12-10T11:59:33","date_gmt":"2021-12-10T16:59:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tempestmag.org\/v01_2020\/staging\/?p=4902"},"modified":"2022-11-06T11:07:23","modified_gmt":"2022-11-06T16:07:23","slug":"on-not-expelling-jamaal-bowman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tempestmag.org\/test02\/2021\/12\/on-not-expelling-jamaal-bowman\/","title":{"rendered":"On (not) expelling Jamaal Bowman"},"content":{"rendered":"

F<\/span>ollowing weeks of public calls for censure and expulsion, the crisis in the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) over the actions of DSA member and congressional representative Jamaal Bowman has come to a close. Bowman will not be expelled<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Beginning with the Madison, Wisconsin chapter on October 30, 28 DSA chapters and 11 Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) chapters issued open letters<\/a> or signed onto statements<\/a> calling for disciplinary action on Bowman. These cited his votes enabling $4 billion in direct military aid to the state of Israel, repeated attacks on boycott, divest, and sanction (BDS) tactics and the Palestinian solidarity movement, and a propaganda tour to Israel with liberal Zionist organization J-Street.<\/p>\n

As momentum built<\/a>, DSA\u2019s BDS and Palestine Working Group (BDSWG) issued their first statement<\/a> on November 17, 2021 demanding that DSA\u2019s leadership, the National Political Committee (NPC), expel Bowman unless he agreed to three demands (honor BDS; vote against any legislation that would harm Palestine; and observe the travel boycott). BDSWG had been speaking with Bowman for months following his vote for the Iron Dome missile defense system<\/a>, trying to move him on his positions on Israel to no avail. On November 18, opponents of disciplining Bowman issued their own statement (\u201cFor Unity, Not Unanimity\u201d<\/a>). No chapters voted to endorse the For Unity<\/i> statement, though it did include high profile elected officials, such as Jabari Brisport and Julia Salazar, amidst its supporters.<\/p>\n

The NPC and BDSWG met with Bowman on November 19, who, according to The Nation<\/i><\/a>, refused to accept the demands but pledged some desire to continue working for a resolution. However, on November 29 (International Day of Palestinian Solidarity), Bowman went through with his scheduled J-Street town hall, prompting a second statement<\/a> from BDSWG demanding expulsion. The NPC reportedly held a private meeting with Bowman and announced a statement would be made on December 2.<\/p>\n

In the lead-up to the NPC statement, Jacobin magazine published an editorial against expulsion<\/a> and refused to publish a response<\/a>. Soon after, Electronic Intifada<\/i><\/a> notes,<\/p>\n

several Palestinians and Arab Americans stepped in to shield the New York Democrat from growing grassroots anger over his support for Israel\u2026They included James Zogby, longtime Democratic Party stalwart and president of the Arab American Institute, and his former deputy Omar Baddar<\/a>\u2026Waleed Shahid, a senior Democratic Party strategist, touted Zaknoen DeReus [director of the Institute for Middle East Understanding]\u2019s intervention as a reason to oppose the expulsion of Bowman from DSA.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On December 2, BDS National Committee appeared to adjust their position, moving from describing BDS as a picket line<\/a> not to be crossed to a \u201ccontext specific<\/a>\u201d tactic, just in time to be cited in the statement delivered that day by the NPC, declaring that they had \u201cdecided not to expel Bowman.\u201d The NPC used the interventions as justification of a \u201cboth sides\u201d narrative to ultimately reject expulsion.<\/p>\n