CHICAGO (AP) — The parents of a 23-year-old American taken hostage by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel gave a moving speech Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention, pleading for the release of the dozens of people who continue to be held captive in Gaza.
"This is a political convention. But needing our only son — and all of the cherished hostages — home is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue," said Jon Polin, whose son Hersh Goldberg-Polin lost part of his left arm and was kidnapped from Israel by militants who attacked the music festival he was attending.
Polin and his wife, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, were greeted with an extended ovation and chants of "bring him home" by the thousands of Democratic delegates in Chicago.
They steered clear of politics in their 10-minute speech, but Jon Polin said the families of the American hostages meet regularly in Washington and are heartened to see bipartisan support for securing the release of their loved ones. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, he said, are "both working tirelessly" for a deal between Israel and Hamas for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of the remaining hostages.
"Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you, stay strong, survive," Rachel Polin-Goldberg said.
She and her husband wore stickers with the number 320, drawing attention to the number of days their son has been held.
The speech put an emotional and human face on the Israel-Hamas conflict, a sensitive issue for Democrats, who face pressure from pro-Palestinian protesters to more forcefully press Israel to end the siege that has leveled much of the Gaza Strip and killed tens of thousands of people, according to the Gaza health ministry, which does not distinguish in its death count between militants and civilians.
Delegates of the "uncommitted" movement, which was sparked by dissatisfaction with President Joe Biden's handling of the Israel-Hamas war, announced to reporters late Wednesday that officials denied their request for a Palestinian to speak during the convention. The group of 36 delegates has outsized influence as they stem from pivotal battleground states like Michigan, which is part of the so-called "blue wall" critical to Democratic chances in November.
The movement's leaders had negotiated for weeks with the Harris campaign and convention organizers, and were given a panel Monday afternoon to discuss family members lost or maimed in Israel's offensive.
"I have asked for the vice president to call us back and tell us that the suppression of Palestinian Americans does not belong in the Democratic Party and a Palestinian speaker will speak on this stage," Uncommitted National Movement co-founder Abbas Alawieh said. "I'm waiting for the call."
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called on convention organizers to make space for a Palestinian speaker.
"Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, so too must we center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment," the New York lawmaker wrote on the X platform. "To deny that story is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians."
More than 100 hostages remain in Gaza, though some are believed to have died. Family members of six of the eight American hostages still held by Hamas were in Chicago to raise awareness about their loved ones' plight.
Ronen and Orna Neutra, the parents of hostage Omer Neutra, were given a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention last month.
"Time is running out," Ronen Neutra told The Associated Press at the Democratic convention. "And all leaders must work together in a bipartisan fashion to put pressure on both Hamas and the Israeli government and reach a deal that is so much overdue, so much overdue."
On Tuesday, multiple pro-Palestinian demonstrators were arrested after clashing with police during a protest that began outside the Israeli consulate and spilled out onto the surrounding streets.
Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday as the United States presses Israel and Hamas to agree to a "bridging proposal" that could lead to a cease-fire in the war in Gaza.
Associated Press journalists Farnoush Amiri and Mike Householder in Chicago contributed to this report.
