Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, May/June 1998, Pages 74-75

Arab-American Activism

President Clinton To Address Arab American Conference

President Bill Clinton will address Arab Americans from across the United States May 7 in a first-ever appearance by a U.S. president at a national Arab-American conference. President Clinton will speak at “Vote ’98: A Winning Strategy,” a four-day national leadership conference to be held in Washington, DC May 7 through 10 co-sponsored by the Arab American Institute, Palestinian American Congress, and the National Arab American Business Association.

“Vote ’98” will include a session on Capitol Hill with more than 30 members of the House and Senate, a White House briefing, presentations and strategy sessions, and opportunities for individual Arab Americans to meet with their representatives in Congress.

“This is an historic event that marks a threshold in Arab-American political empowerment,” Arab American Institute James Zogby said. “President Clinton is reaching out to our community as no other president has,”

—Shawn L. Twing

ADC Leader Criticizes President Clinton for Echoing Myths About Israel

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) president Hala Maksoud criticized President Bill Clinton for perpetuating myths about the founding of Israel in his comments made during an April 13 CBS special commemorating Israel’s 50th anniversary. During the two-hour special, which included celebrities Kevin Costner, Michael Douglas, Winona Ryder, Arnold Schwarzeneger, Steven Spielberg and Stevie Wonder, Clinton praised Israel for “making a once-desert bloom.”

“We are dismayed that the president would participate in this show and perpetuate the myth that Palestine was a desert. Palestine was not a desert. Palestinians had a rich culture and society...but Israel erased the Palestinian presence from the land, destroying 418 Palestinian villages,” Maksoud said. “Mr. Clinton’s statement was particularly astonishing, coming at a time when the U.S. is trying to act as an honest broker in the peace process. How can the U.S. be an honest broker while the president is participating in the annulling of the history of one of the parties?” she asked.

Earlier, the national daily USA Today offered its explanation of why Israel got two hours of CBS prime-time television, a privilege seldom, if ever, conferred on other countries. “Turns out there was a family connection,” USA Today noted. “Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, also happened to be the great uncle of CBS TV chief Leslie Moonves.”

—Shawn L. Twing