"Tariq Habash was a special assistant that focused on student loan issues and volunteered on Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign. His resignation letter, addressed to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and obtained by The Washington Post, said he 'cannot represent an administration that does not value all human life equally.'
Habash, who wrote that he was the only Palestinian-American political appointee in the department, said the actions of the Biden administration have put millions of lives in danger.
'I cannot stay silent as this administration turns a blind eye to the atrocities committed against innocent Palestinian lives, in what leading human rights experts have called a genocidal campaign by the Israeli government,' he continued. 'I cannot be quietly complicit as this administration fails to leverage its influence as Israel’s strongest ally to halt the abusive and ongoing collective punishment tactics that have cut off Palestinians in Gaza from food, water, electricity, fuel, and medical supplies, leading to widespread disease and starvation.'
Habash noted that as an expert in higher education, 'it is also impossible to ignore' that the conflict affects students at American colleges and universities. He called on the Education Department to play an active role in supporting schools as they support students, faculty and staff, including 'protecting all students who choose to exercise their first amendment right.'
The former official also said antisemitism, anti-Palestinian sentiment and Islamophobia 'are all abhorrent.'"
~ Lauren Irwin
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