One sweet thing that happened after Israel barred Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.): People are sending love to their “Sitty” — the Arabic name for grandmother. In a heartbeat, #My Palestinian Sitty was trending on Twitter.
Tlaib had to scuttle plans to visit her own sitty, Muftiyah Tlaib, on the West Bank after the Democratic congresswoman was barred from entering Israel on Thursday — thanks to a nudge from Donald Trump. Tlaib, who is Palestinian-American, was banned from the country because of her support for the pro-Palestinian boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
When Israeli officials relented on “humanitarian grounds” to allow Tlaib to see her grandmother as a private citizen, the congresswoman refused because she considered conditions for the trip to be oppressive and the government’s treatment to be humiliating. Trump appallingly scoffed in a tweet that Muftiyah Tlaib must be relieved because she “doesn’t have to see her” granddaughter now.
In true feisty grandmotherly fashion, Sitty Tlaib said she was “so proud” of her granddaughter. As for Trump, she said: “May God ruin him.”
That got people reminiscing about their own sitty.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story said Tlaib represents a district in Minnesota. She represents part of Michigan.