A state senator from Detroit is asking her Arab American and Muslim constituents to forgive her for taking a recent trip to Israel.
Sen. Sylvia Santana, a Democrat whose district includes all of Dearborn and Dearborn Heights, which have heavy populations of Arab Americans, posted her apology Saturday on Facebook and X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
“After speaking with friends and members of the community I recognize my presence on this trip has sparked anger and disappointment by many in the Arab/Muslim community,” Santana wrote. “For this I truly apologize, seek your forgiveness and hope that you will understand that I had no malicious intent. There is no perfect combination of words that I can offer that truly reflects the feelings in my heart. My only goal was to learn about this region of our world and to improve my understanding of matters related to Michigan.”
Santana added that she “should have exercised better discretion and engaged in a different protocol with community leaders to seek their counsel prior to the trip.”
Santana was supposed to hold an ice cream social at The Custard Company in Dearborn on Monday, but one of the co-owners, Dearborn Heights City Councilman Mo Baydoun, canceled the event because of the trip, according to Osama Siblani, publisher of the Arab American News.
“The news about Santana’s visit to Israel shocked and angered the Arab American community, to say the least,” Siblani wrote on Facebook about six hours before Santana’s post. “Santana’s visit constitutes a slap in the face to the Arab American community who has been supportive and respectful to the Senator.”
Santana’s trip came amid rising tensions in Israel, where violence has escalated since the country’s hawkish government took charge in December. Jewish settlers have attacked Palestinian villages, and the Israeli military has used air strikes on a refugee camp.
Arab American scholar Khalil Rammal responded to Santana’s post, saying the trip was indefensible.
“There’s no excuse for you to visit Israel when your Democratic President himself refuses to meet with Israel’s PM who heads the most radical and extremist government ever, and who continues to kill Palestinians Arabs under a brutal and an apartheid occupation,” Rammal wrote. “Even pro Israeli lobby organizations are speaking out for the first time in history and calling for the reduction of US military aid to deter Israel’s expansionism.
Not everyone agreed.
“You shouldn’t have to apologize for taking a trip to a free country,” Ociel Torres responded. “There are other states in the Muslim world that engage in apartheid against Palestine. You did nothing wrong and the anti semitism is rife in various communities. Israel has a right to exist.”
Santana said she’s learned a lesson.
“I understand now more than before the level of pain, sensitivity and deep rooted emotions that this trip has produced,” Santana said. “This experience will always stay with me and will help guide my work in Lansing.”
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