The White House was forced to scale back its annual Ramadan celebration after Muslims appeared to boycott the event.
The only attendees at the iftar dinner on Tuesday were reportedly members of President Joe BIden’s administration, a stark contrast to last year’s event which marks the end of the Muslim holy month.
“Last year, President Biden hadn’t even spoken a word at the White House celebration of Ramadan before someone shouted out ‘we love you.’ Hundreds of Muslims were there to mark the end of the holy month that requires fasting from sunrise to sunset,” CBS News reported.
“There are no such joyous scenes during this Ramadan. With many Muslim Americans outraged over Mr. Biden’s support for Israel’s siege of Gaza, the White House chose to hold a smaller iftar dinner on Tuesday evening,” the media outlet noted, adding that there was an effort to call the dinner a meeting to discuss the administration’s policies.
Wa’el Alzayat, who leads the Muslim advocacy group Engage, told CBS News, “We’re just in a different world.”
“It’s completely surreal. And it’s sad,” he added, explaining that he declined this year’s invite though he attended last year. “It’s inappropriate to do such a celebration while there’s a famine going on in Gaza.”
A White House official told CBS News that Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, along with senior administration officials, met with Muslim leaders.
The statement acknowledged that the president and his VP “know this is a deeply painful moment for many in the Muslim and Arab communities.”
“President Biden made clear that he mourns the loss of every innocent life in this conflict. The president also expressed his commitment to continue working to secure an immediate ceasefire as part of a deal to free the hostages and significantly increase humanitarian aid into Gaza,” the statement said.
A Palestinian-American ER doctor walked out of the meeting in protest, telling CBS News that Biden made “very vague comments.” Dr. Thaer Ahmad handed the president a letter from an 8-year-old orphan girl in Gaza before storming out.
“Out of respect for my community, out of respect for all of the people who have suffered and who have been killed in the process, I needed to walk out of the meeting,” Ahmad, who said he was the only Palestinian-American in the meeting, said.
He noted that “there wasn’t a lot of response” from the president. “He actually said he understood, and I walked away,” Ahmad told CNN.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended the president and touted his “tradition of honoring the Muslim community during Ramadan.”
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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