Global Courant
Washington, DC – The Biden administration’s decision to allow Israelis to travel to the United States visa-free has angered Arab Americans, who say the move represents a tacit endorsement of Israeli discrimination against Palestinian and Arab Americans travelers.
The US on Wednesday admitted Israel to the selective Visa Waiver Program (VWP), welcoming the relationship between the two most important allies.
The VWP requires admitted countries to adhere to what is known as “reciprocity”. This means that countries whose nationals are allowed to travel to the US without a visa may not, in turn, deny entry to US citizens without a credible reason.
In this case, however, Palestinian advocates say the US will allow Israeli citizens to enter the country without a visa, while the Israeli government detains, interrogates and turns back American travelers.
Activists argued that by adding Israel to the VWP, the US overlooked well-documented Israeli discrimination against Americans of Arab and Palestinian descent, and against supporters of Palestinian human rights more broadly.
For example, Israel did not allow US Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib to visit the country and the occupied Palestinian territories in 2019, citing “their boycott activities against Israel.”
James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute, a Washington DC-based think tank, said the US is deprioritizing the rights of its own citizens.
“This was about us. It was about Arab Americans and our rights,” Zogby said. “I feel betrayed by my government for knowingly throwing us under the bus.”
What did the US say?
U.S. officials have often emphasized that “blue is blue,” referring to the color of the U.S. passport and the privileges it brings.
Reciprocity is a key element of U.S. travel policy; Washington even imposes visa fees on citizens of countries that charge US citizens visa fees.
In a statement on Wednesday, Washington said Israel had met the reciprocity requirement.
“Israel has updated its entry policy to comply with the VWP requirement to extend reciprocal privileges to all U.S. citizens regardless of national origin, religion or ethnicity,” U.S. government officials said.
But activists say Israel received the benefits of the VWP without regard to the mistreatment of American citizens and in violation of American laws.
For example, Americans living in Gaza will still need a special permit from Israeli authorities to leave the besieged area — an arrangement that does not exist for any other country in the program.
Pressed on Wednesday about the issue, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller acknowledged there are “different procedures” for Gaza. He said the area is controlled by a “foreign terrorist organization,” referring to the Palestinian movement Hamas.
But he emphasized that Israel still meets the reciprocity requirement.
‘No respect for us’
What angers many Arab Americans even more is the fact that Biden administration officials have not only included Israel in the program.
They have actively and publicly pushed for its inclusion in a campaign largely led by Thomas Nides, Washington’s former envoy to Israel, who regularly posted about efforts to social media in the past two years.
In addition, activists said the inclusion of the VWP provided a political victory to one of the most right-wing governments in Israeli history under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Zogby said US President Joe Biden’s attempt to reward Israel is difficult to understand. “I’m offended and I’m angry,” he added.
He told Al Jazeera that he himself was detained and interrogated for hours at Israeli checkpoints, even as he accompanied US officials in the region.
“They have no respect for us,” Zogby said of Israel. “And now our own government is basically saying they don’t respect us. That is the problem.”
Israel’s entry into the VWP also came amid growing concerns about the safety of American citizens in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories and Washington’s muted response to abuses against them.
Israeli forces killed two American citizens last year: renowned Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and an elderly Palestinian-American man, Omar Assad.
Here’s how other Arab Americans, Palestinian rights activists and US lawmakers reacted this week to the decision to add Israel to the VWP:
Democratic Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib
“This decision enables further racist practices and violence against Americans, including the murder of Shireen Abu Akleh. The United States has still not held the Israeli government accountable.
“The Visa Waiver Program requires that all U.S. citizens be treated equally. I have received consistent reports of discrimination against Americans attempting to enter Israel.”
US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib was denied entry by Israel in 2019 (File: Sarah Silbiger/Reuters)
Mohammed Khader, advocacy group for the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights
“The Biden administration’s designation of Israel’s admission to the Visa Waiver Program is an abhorrent oversight that demotes American law under Israeli law and trades the rights of American citizens for closer ties with an apartheid state that has established authoritarian governments in the foreign countries armed.”
IfNotNow, progressive Jewish-American group
“By admitting Israel to the Visa Waiver Program, the United States is essentially condoning Israel’s apartheid regime against Palestinians by endorsing Israeli discrimination against Palestinian-American citizens.”
Adam Shapiro, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN)
“Separate can never be equal, as was determined decades ago in the fight for civil rights in this country.
“Forty countries participate in the VWP, and none have formal arrangements to discriminate against U.S. citizens; only Israel has demanded and received this unconscionable favor from the US government.”
The United States @DHSgov And @StateDept should suspend Israel’s participation in the Visa Waiver Program until the pending lawsuit alleging that the program unlawfully discriminates against American citizens of Palestinian descent is resolved, DAWN said today.
— DAWN MENA (@DAWNmenaorg) September 27, 2023
Democratic Senators Chris Van Hollen, Brian Schatz, Jeff Merkley and Peter Welch
“So far, Israel has failed to meet the ‘Blue is Blue’ requirement.
“Adhering to this important American principle of reciprocity and equal treatment of all American citizens is critical to the integrity of the Visa Waiver Program, and we are deeply concerned by the Administration’s decision to move further in violation of that principle .”
Stefanie Fox, Jewish Voice for Peace Action advocacy group
“Once again, the US is singling out Israel for special and exceptional treatment at the expense of the rights of Palestinian Americans.”
Sandra Tamari, Palestinian-led Adalah Justice Project
“Israel’s discrimination is especially blatant against Palestinian Americans with ties to Gaza, making reunification of families torn apart by Israel’s siege and blockade of Gaza virtually impossible. Apartheid is not just Israeli policy, it is also American policy.”
