Every year on May 15, Palestinians observe Nakba Day (Catastrophe), commemorating the 1948 events when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forcibly displaced and the state of Israel was established. Despite being the most influential power in the Middle East and maintaining strong support for Israel, the U.S. government has never officially recognized this event.
Khaled Elgindy, a senior fellow at the Quincy Institute, told Al Jazeera this reflects America's 'political amnesia.' He argued that without acknowledging Palestinian history and collective trauma, the U.S. can hardly craft fair policies on the issue.
Under President Donald Trump, the U.S. deepened its intervention in Palestinian affairs through a Gaza reconstruction plan. Meanwhile, alleged acts of genocide in Gaza continue, with at least 75,000 Palestinians killed since October 2023.
A Symbolic Resolution
On May 15, Representative Rashida Tlaib (Democrat) for the fifth time introduced a resolution demanding Congress formally recognize the 'ongoing Nakba' and the rights of Palestinian refugees. The resolution gained 12 co-sponsors, up from six in 2022.
Tlaib stressed that ignoring the history of violence dating back to 1948 prevents Congress from seeing the full picture. However, analysts say the resolution is largely symbolic and unlikely to advance in a Congress where pro-Israel sentiment dominates.
Still, U.S. public opinion is shifting. Recent polls show growing sympathy for Palestinians and rising negativity toward the Israeli government, especially among young people and Democratic voters. In April, 40 Democratic senators voted to block a military bulldozer sale to Israel—a move activists called 'historic.'
Yousef Munayyer, a fellow at the Arab Center Washington DC, said Tlaib's resolution may not pass today, but it is a necessary step to build momentum for future change.
Forgotten in U.S. Policy
Even commemorating Nakba on May 15 is contentious in Washington. In 2023, the U.S., along with the UK, Germany, and 30 other nations, voted against a UN resolution recognizing the event, citing 'concerns about anti-Israel bias' in the UN system.
That same year, Tlaib held the first Nakba commemoration at the Capitol. Republican leadership, under pressure from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), tried to cancel it.
This was not always the case. According to Elgindy's research, under President Harry Truman, the U.S. supported UN General Assembly Resolution 194 on the right of return for Palestinian refugees. Former Secretary of State John Kerry also briefly mentioned Nakba in a 2016 speech.
But since the 1960s, when President Lyndon B. Johnson adopted a more comprehensive pro-Israel stance, U.S. acknowledgment of Nakba faded. Elgindy remarked: 'I am surprised how within a single generation, everything was forgotten in American politics.'
Supporters of Tlaib's resolution see it as a practical step, not just symbolic. Josh Ruebner, director of the Institute for Middle East Understanding, argued: 'If policymakers do not account for Nakba and work to remedy it, they will merely sustain an unjust status quo.'
Munayyer agreed: 'It cannot take 80 years to recognize Nakba, and it cannot take another 80 years to recognize the ongoing genocide in Gaza.'
