Frederick Haynes speaks during an event held by the Poor People’s Campaign on the steps of the Texas State Capitol on July 31, 2021 in Austin, Texas.
Outspoken Pro-Palestinian Pastor Wins Primary to Replace Crockett in House
A group that tracks pro-Israel lobbying said his victory "proves that the AIPAC era is over."
A pro-Palestine pastor has won the Democratic primary to fill the House seat in Texas that will be left behind by the pro-Israel Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who was a congregant at his church for years.
Frederick Haynes III, who has led the Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas for more than 40 years and was chosen by the late Rev. Jesse Jackson to lead his famed Rainbow PUSH coalition, won the primary for the seat now held by the two-term congresswoman with 72% of the vote.
Crockett announced in December that she would run for the US Senate rather than for reelection to her House seat.
Haynes—who campaigned on Medicare for All, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and hiking the minimum wage—was endorsed by Crockett (D-Texas), who lost the bitterly contested Senate primary to state Rep. James Talarico (D-50) on Tuesday.
But where Crockett has faced heat from the Democratic base over her statements and votes in support of Israel amid its genocide in Gaza and her backing by pro-Israel megadonors, Haynes's credibility was bolstered by his willingness to call out Israel's human rights abuses against Palestinians when few other Democrats would.
On October 8, 2023, as Israel was just beginning what would become a two-year campaign to destroy Gaza in retaliation for Hamas' killing of around 1,200 Israelis the previous day, Haynes delivered a sermon questioning what was then a bipartisan consensus of unwavering military and diplomatic support for Israel.
“I recognize that we’ve got to be pro-Israel... or we get in trouble,” he said, echoing the views of a small number of progressive members of Congress at the time. “Well, I’m coming to get in trouble.”
Quoting former President Jimmy Carter, he said, "Israel is engaging in apartheid with Palestinians."
The Palestinians... don’t have the weaponry of Israel, the Palestinians don’t have the financial backing from the United States that Israel has. And so they throw their rocks and shoot their arrows, and Israel is able to bomb them and kill them. Watch in the news the disparity between Palestinians being killed and Israelis being killed. It is totally unfair. But this country is going to stand on the side of apartheid because that’s its track record.
It was a speech that would prove prescient, as Israel’s military campaign would result in the deaths of around 73,000 Palestinians in the coming years, according to official tallies from the Gaza Health Ministry, nearly 70% of whom were women and children, according to the United Nations Human Rights Office. Independent estimates suggest the actual death toll is much higher.
In that time, neither Democratic former President Joe Biden nor current Republican President Donald Trump cut off weapons sales despite a tremendous collapse of public support for Israel.
Haynes' run for Congress began mere months ago. After testifying against Republicans' efforts to racially gerrymander Texas in July, he waited right up until the federal filing deadline in December to announce a bid for Crockett's seat.
His campaign did not focus heavily on the Israel-Palestine conflict—instead emphasizing issues closer to home like the high cost of living, voting rights, and Trump's use of ICE to attack immigrant and minority communities.
But the virality of his past comments and his campaigning for the Biden administration to cut off weapons to Israel back in 2024 bolstered his image as a fighter for Palestinian rights, which earned him the endorsement of Justice Democrats and $72,000 in support from the American Priorities PAC, a newly formed group intended to support progressive candidates and counter the influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
His victory on Tuesday comes as Palestinian rights have become vastly more salient among Democratic voters and the public at large. Less than a week ago, a Gallup poll showed that for the first time, a larger percentage of Americans sympathize with the Palestinians than the Israelis.
While support for Israel was also not at the forefront of the Senate primary, both Talarico and Crockett avoided joining the bulk of the party base in calling the US-backed Israeli assault on Gaza a "genocide." However, Talarico referred to the destruction of Gaza as a "moral and spiritual emergency" and condemned Israeli "war crimes."
Haynes's district is considered one of the safest in Texas for Democrats, and he is believed to be the overwhelming favorite to win the seat in November and head to Congress.
The group AIPAC Tracker, which monitors donations that politicians receive from the powerful group and the rest of the pro-Israel lobby, said that Haynes’ “big win” on Tuesday “proves that the AIPAC era is over.”
"Candidates like him all over the country," they said, "are speaking the truth rather than running away in fear."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
A pro-Palestine pastor has won the Democratic primary to fill the House seat in Texas that will be left behind by the pro-Israel Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who was a congregant at his church for years.
Frederick Haynes III, who has led the Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas for more than 40 years and was chosen by the late Rev. Jesse Jackson to lead his famed Rainbow PUSH coalition, won the primary for the seat now held by the two-term congresswoman with 72% of the vote.
Crockett announced in December that she would run for the US Senate rather than for reelection to her House seat.
Haynes—who campaigned on Medicare for All, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and hiking the minimum wage—was endorsed by Crockett (D-Texas), who lost the bitterly contested Senate primary to state Rep. James Talarico (D-50) on Tuesday.
But where Crockett has faced heat from the Democratic base over her statements and votes in support of Israel amid its genocide in Gaza and her backing by pro-Israel megadonors, Haynes's credibility was bolstered by his willingness to call out Israel's human rights abuses against Palestinians when few other Democrats would.
On October 8, 2023, as Israel was just beginning what would become a two-year campaign to destroy Gaza in retaliation for Hamas' killing of around 1,200 Israelis the previous day, Haynes delivered a sermon questioning what was then a bipartisan consensus of unwavering military and diplomatic support for Israel.
“I recognize that we’ve got to be pro-Israel... or we get in trouble,” he said, echoing the views of a small number of progressive members of Congress at the time. “Well, I’m coming to get in trouble.”
Quoting former President Jimmy Carter, he said, "Israel is engaging in apartheid with Palestinians."
The Palestinians... don’t have the weaponry of Israel, the Palestinians don’t have the financial backing from the United States that Israel has. And so they throw their rocks and shoot their arrows, and Israel is able to bomb them and kill them. Watch in the news the disparity between Palestinians being killed and Israelis being killed. It is totally unfair. But this country is going to stand on the side of apartheid because that’s its track record.
It was a speech that would prove prescient, as Israel’s military campaign would result in the deaths of around 73,000 Palestinians in the coming years, according to official tallies from the Gaza Health Ministry, nearly 70% of whom were women and children, according to the United Nations Human Rights Office. Independent estimates suggest the actual death toll is much higher.
In that time, neither Democratic former President Joe Biden nor current Republican President Donald Trump cut off weapons sales despite a tremendous collapse of public support for Israel.
Haynes' run for Congress began mere months ago. After testifying against Republicans' efforts to racially gerrymander Texas in July, he waited right up until the federal filing deadline in December to announce a bid for Crockett's seat.
His campaign did not focus heavily on the Israel-Palestine conflict—instead emphasizing issues closer to home like the high cost of living, voting rights, and Trump's use of ICE to attack immigrant and minority communities.
But the virality of his past comments and his campaigning for the Biden administration to cut off weapons to Israel back in 2024 bolstered his image as a fighter for Palestinian rights, which earned him the endorsement of Justice Democrats and $72,000 in support from the American Priorities PAC, a newly formed group intended to support progressive candidates and counter the influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
His victory on Tuesday comes as Palestinian rights have become vastly more salient among Democratic voters and the public at large. Less than a week ago, a Gallup poll showed that for the first time, a larger percentage of Americans sympathize with the Palestinians than the Israelis.
While support for Israel was also not at the forefront of the Senate primary, both Talarico and Crockett avoided joining the bulk of the party base in calling the US-backed Israeli assault on Gaza a "genocide." However, Talarico referred to the destruction of Gaza as a "moral and spiritual emergency" and condemned Israeli "war crimes."
Haynes's district is considered one of the safest in Texas for Democrats, and he is believed to be the overwhelming favorite to win the seat in November and head to Congress.
The group AIPAC Tracker, which monitors donations that politicians receive from the powerful group and the rest of the pro-Israel lobby, said that Haynes’ “big win” on Tuesday “proves that the AIPAC era is over.”
"Candidates like him all over the country," they said, "are speaking the truth rather than running away in fear."
A pro-Palestine pastor has won the Democratic primary to fill the House seat in Texas that will be left behind by the pro-Israel Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who was a congregant at his church for years.
Frederick Haynes III, who has led the Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas for more than 40 years and was chosen by the late Rev. Jesse Jackson to lead his famed Rainbow PUSH coalition, won the primary for the seat now held by the two-term congresswoman with 72% of the vote.
Crockett announced in December that she would run for the US Senate rather than for reelection to her House seat.
Haynes—who campaigned on Medicare for All, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and hiking the minimum wage—was endorsed by Crockett (D-Texas), who lost the bitterly contested Senate primary to state Rep. James Talarico (D-50) on Tuesday.
But where Crockett has faced heat from the Democratic base over her statements and votes in support of Israel amid its genocide in Gaza and her backing by pro-Israel megadonors, Haynes's credibility was bolstered by his willingness to call out Israel's human rights abuses against Palestinians when few other Democrats would.
On October 8, 2023, as Israel was just beginning what would become a two-year campaign to destroy Gaza in retaliation for Hamas' killing of around 1,200 Israelis the previous day, Haynes delivered a sermon questioning what was then a bipartisan consensus of unwavering military and diplomatic support for Israel.
“I recognize that we’ve got to be pro-Israel... or we get in trouble,” he said, echoing the views of a small number of progressive members of Congress at the time. “Well, I’m coming to get in trouble.”
Quoting former President Jimmy Carter, he said, "Israel is engaging in apartheid with Palestinians."
The Palestinians... don’t have the weaponry of Israel, the Palestinians don’t have the financial backing from the United States that Israel has. And so they throw their rocks and shoot their arrows, and Israel is able to bomb them and kill them. Watch in the news the disparity between Palestinians being killed and Israelis being killed. It is totally unfair. But this country is going to stand on the side of apartheid because that’s its track record.
It was a speech that would prove prescient, as Israel’s military campaign would result in the deaths of around 73,000 Palestinians in the coming years, according to official tallies from the Gaza Health Ministry, nearly 70% of whom were women and children, according to the United Nations Human Rights Office. Independent estimates suggest the actual death toll is much higher.
In that time, neither Democratic former President Joe Biden nor current Republican President Donald Trump cut off weapons sales despite a tremendous collapse of public support for Israel.
Haynes' run for Congress began mere months ago. After testifying against Republicans' efforts to racially gerrymander Texas in July, he waited right up until the federal filing deadline in December to announce a bid for Crockett's seat.
His campaign did not focus heavily on the Israel-Palestine conflict—instead emphasizing issues closer to home like the high cost of living, voting rights, and Trump's use of ICE to attack immigrant and minority communities.
But the virality of his past comments and his campaigning for the Biden administration to cut off weapons to Israel back in 2024 bolstered his image as a fighter for Palestinian rights, which earned him the endorsement of Justice Democrats and $72,000 in support from the American Priorities PAC, a newly formed group intended to support progressive candidates and counter the influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
His victory on Tuesday comes as Palestinian rights have become vastly more salient among Democratic voters and the public at large. Less than a week ago, a Gallup poll showed that for the first time, a larger percentage of Americans sympathize with the Palestinians than the Israelis.
While support for Israel was also not at the forefront of the Senate primary, both Talarico and Crockett avoided joining the bulk of the party base in calling the US-backed Israeli assault on Gaza a "genocide." However, Talarico referred to the destruction of Gaza as a "moral and spiritual emergency" and condemned Israeli "war crimes."
Haynes's district is considered one of the safest in Texas for Democrats, and he is believed to be the overwhelming favorite to win the seat in November and head to Congress.
The group AIPAC Tracker, which monitors donations that politicians receive from the powerful group and the rest of the pro-Israel lobby, said that Haynes’ “big win” on Tuesday “proves that the AIPAC era is over.”
"Candidates like him all over the country," they said, "are speaking the truth rather than running away in fear."