Aida Touma-Suliman, the 50-year-old Palestinian woman poised to win a seat in Israeli parliament tomorrow, is sick of talking.
The campaign trail is unfamiliar territory for Touma-Suliman, who's been running the Palestinian women's rights organization “>Al-Ittihad since 2011. For the past few weeks now, her sole job has been to convince Palestinian citizens of Israel, who have a historically low voter turnout rate, to show up to the ballot box on March 17. “>Hadash.
Zoabi is, of course, the more (in)famous of the two women, but not for long. Touma-Suliman has emerged a natural, hopeful leader from an impossible bind — a level-headed yet transfixing character who, despite every force working against her, manages to balance a dedication to both justice and goodwill. She's equal parts feminist, communist, human-rights activist and diplomat. In conversation, she's fiery in her stance against the Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories, but appears no less concerned about social and economic hardships currently facing Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Anyone with any doubt in Touma-Suliman's abilities need only watch her gracefully hand it to Israel's condescending patriarchy, above, at 03:11. Can't wait to see what this fringe voice of reason can do with the country's highest platform.