Here in Michigan, we know the Democrats have failed on Gaza – and they’ll pay dearly for it | Mona Mawari

My community is a hub of Arab and Muslim America. Kamala Harris’s stance on the Middle East has left us hurt and angry

We speak to voters in the states that will decide the US election about the issues that matter to them most

My home town of Dearborn, next to Detroit, is once again under the microscope during a tight election season. While analysts and pollsters see numbers and statistics, I see a beautiful place thriving with diverse communities. Michigan is a key swing state and has the highest Arab-American population in the US, and when I walk in my neighbourhood, I’m greeted by a sea of kofias, Middle Eastern bakeries that make your mouth water, and fancy Yemeni cafes. “Free Palestine” and “ceasefire now” signs pepper the town, in yards and on windows. People express their solidarity with Palestine and Lebanon through T-shirts, watermelon earrings, flags, pendants and bracelets.

The Muslim and Arab community isn’t a monolith, of course, but Gaza is top of our minds this election. Like many in my community, I struggled to get out of bed and go about my daily life after the assault on Gaza began. As we saw our friends and family members being massacred, many of us banded together to put pressure on the Democrats to do something. We mobilised and got more than 100,000 “uncommited” votes in the Michigan presidential primary, showing how those opposed to US-funded genocide could vote as a bloc.

Mona Mawari is a resident of Dearborn, Michigan, a pharmacist, and a community organiser with Detroit Action, and was a volunteer coordinator for the national uncommitted movement. These views are her own and do not represent those of her employer

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.