We Are Stronger
when We Build Bridges
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
CA
Keith
Ellison, a Democratic candidate from Minnesota’s
5th District, created history when he became the
first Muslim to be elected to the US Congress.
Ellison got 136,061 or 56% votes while his rival,
Republican Party candidate Alan Fine, received
only 52,263 or 21% votes. Independent candidate
Ms. Tammy Lee also got 21% or 51,456 votes.
The voters responded to his liberal message calling
for peace, withdrawal of US troops from Iraq and
universal health care. In a victory message, Ellison
said that he made history because he showed that
a candidate can run a 100% positive campaign and
prevail, even against tough opposition.
He said, “We showed that we are stronger
when we build bridges between communities rather
than trying to divide and conquer. He added that
he was working for an America where everybody
counts, where everybody matters, and where peace
is our guiding principle.
American Muslim Voice Executive Director, Samina
Faheem Sundas, welcoming the election of Ellison,
said that the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, have
both heightened prejudice against Muslims and
spurred Muslims to be more politically active
for countering prejudice. "There are millions
of Muslims in this country. It shouldn't have
taken this long to elect one to Congress,"
she added.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations Executive
Director Nihad Awad while congratulating Keith
Ellison on his election thanked the American Muslim
voters for turning out at the polls in Minnesota
and nationwide to support candidates of either
major party who address their concerns. Awad said
the results of Tuesday’s mid-term elections
show that American Muslims are stepping up their
political participation nationwide.
This election should indicate to the Muslim community
that our vote counts, said the Executive Director
of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, Salam Al-Marayati.
"The only way towards success in American
society is by civic engagement and political participation."
Marayati pointed out that "the effectiveness
of this campaign was due to Ellison's ability
to unite labor, minority communities and bring
in people of all religions."
Ellison, 43, who embraced Islam when he was studying
at college, is a defense lawyer and Minnesota
State Assembly member since 2003. Although his
district was considered a safe Democratic one
but he faced bitter campaign attacks on his connection
to the Muslim community. The Star Tribune newspaper
said his GOP opponent's "hateful attempt
to tie Ellison and his party to Islamic extremism"
was "reprehensible." In an editorial
endorsing Ellison, the Star Tribune noted: "The
real drama in this race is the way Republican
Alan Fine has discredited his own campaign with
overwrought attacks on Ellison."
Ellison bills himself as a moderate Muslim who
wants to build coalitions with all religions and
races. He's won the support of the National Jewish
Democratic Council and a prominent Minneapolis
Jewish newspaper, even though his main opponent,
Republican Alan Fine, was Jewish.
The Congressional Quarterly quoted him as saying
that he wants to help others understand that Muslims
have much to contribute to America, while Muslims
themselves should know they are "welcome
to the table of American politics."
The Rev. Jackson, one of America's best-known
civil rights, religious and political figures,
and local notables joined Keith Ellison to rally
volunteers for the final push to victory.
His campaign generated excitement among the seven-million-strong
American Muslim community. He visited Florida
and California – with large concentration
of Muslim population – to garner support
for his campaign. The Council on American-Islamic
Relations collected about $400,000 in a fundraiser
for Ellison.
Ellison won the Democratic primary in the state's
5th Congressional District last September in part
by bringing new Muslim voters into a coalition
that drew, among others, Minneapolis' black, Jewish,
and gay and lesbian communities.
Commenting on Ellison’s victory in primary,
the American Muslim Task Force, an umbrella organization
of American Muslims, said: “This victory
has eradicated two stereotypes: one against Muslims,
that they cannot work and succeed in democratic
setup and the other against the United States,
that it is not a tolerant society.”
The Newsweek reported recently that America's
estimated five to seven million Muslims are nearly
invisible when it comes to holding office. Currently,
the highest-ranking Muslim public official is
Larry Shaw, a North Carolina state senator. In
2004, Ferial Masry, a Saudi-born woman lost her
bid for congress in California. Also from California,
Palestine-born Maad Abu-Ghazalah made two unsuccessful
congressional bids in 2002 and 2004. Pakistani-American
Syed Rifat Mahmood, also from California, made
an unsuccessful bid for congress in 2002 on a
Republican ticket.
During the election campaign, Ellison was asked
how he could make a difference as one of 435 representatives
in the US House. He would "find common ground,"
Ellison told them, by reaching out to other parties,
as he did during the two terms in the Minnesota
state legislature.
(Abdus Sattar Ghazali is Executive Editor of online
magazine, the American Muslim Perspective: www.amperspective.com)
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