family called Salazar beautiful thank

00:14

you if not include everyone in this room and I want you to know that my
very brief lecture this evening is in honor of ???? who was a pioneer herself
and she was a native of Pakistan and was schooled traditionally at home
and held a strong belief in the value of formal education encouraging of her
children to pursue college studies she was a goal-oriented woman she
taught those around for the importance of love dedication hard work and
the respect of our beautiful religion and had generous your free ships there
is a scholarship in her name that will provide American students and any
American student with the opportunity to pursue an education to field
explanted studies and journalism a US-based institution and it's not is the
one that is coordinating that scholarship so I am grateful and honored to
stand here today to honor a powerful woman who no longer is with us
today so please join me in honoring ????hazaragi at our beautiful family
who's here with us today I also want to congratulate you doctor Sayid for
the decades of work that you have committed to our community your name
is a household name – everyone knows who doctor Sayid is and I want you
to know that us and the generations that come after you will understand
that we stand on your shoulders and the work that you have done in the
infrastructure that you have built for all of us to be proud from the United
States of America the congratulations to dr. siding and to my favorite
person in this room cause that’s mutual is Imam Siraj Wahhaj who has
been a mentor, motivator and encourager of mine someone who has taught
me to speak truth to power and not worry about the consequences
someone who has taught me that we are on this earth to please Allah and
only Allah that we are not here to please any man or woman on this earth.
So I am grateful to you Imam Siraj you may think this is weird but every
once in a while when I get that deep dark place Imam Siraj Wahhaj comes
and talks to me he helps me to emerge out of those spaces. So I am
grateful to you Imam May Allah bless you and protect and keep you for a
long time for our committee because we need you now than ever.

I want to be a living lesson for the Muslim community. I want the

challenges that I face to be a lesson to all of you in this room and beyond
this room. What I believe that people can learn from my experience is that
you can be unapologetically Muslim, unapologetically Palestinian
American, hold strong conviction, have strong ideology and politics and still
become a mainstream American who can inspire and resonate with people
outside of the Muslim community.

I have been able to prove the importance of us as Muslim Community

standing up for any and all communities who are oppressed in this county
because not only it the right thing to do it is the Islamic thing to do. I have
been able to teach us and our young people that we do not have to give up
any part of our identity I don’t have to choose in the rooms that I go into or
the organizing spaces I am in or to meet with elected officials or to sit in
interface spaces I don’t have to choose do I not be too Palestinian this
day? Do I not bring up the positions that I have on certain issues? do I hold
back in certain spaces I have been a living example whole heartedly all of
me whatever space I am in people to embrace us all complex identities that
we bring to the table and I will not be in a space where any group or any
organization or individual tells me that there is a part of my [Muslim] identity
that is not welcome into any space. That, my sisters and brothers, is not
something that going to fly with us in the Muslim community. And I want to
share some advice to us and some observations in the very short time I
have. I want to talk about patriotism and that is a conversation that we have
in many elements of the Muslim community. I want us as Muslims in
particular those of us who are children of immigrants or immigrants
themselves .Patriotism in your home country is different than patriotism in
the United States of America. And that is conversation and particular
patriotism in this country in the land of freedom of speech in the land of
democracy d dissent is the highest form of patriotism so the most patriotic,
our heroes the people that we say inspire us El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz
Malcolm X or Mohammad Ali. These are people that dissented against our
government and against the very polices that oppressed the communities
they came from. In these United States of America, if you sit back idly in
the face of injustice, if you maintain the current status quo that not only
oppresses Muslims, but oppresses black people inside our community and
outside our community, undocumented people, other minority groups and
oppressed groups, you, my dear sisters and brothers, are then aligned with
the oppressor. If you, as a Muslim, are standing on the sidelines, if you are
neutral in the face of oppression in this country, you are not a patriot. You
are aiding and abetting the oppressors in these United States of America. I
will not be an aide or help any oppressor in this nation oppress any
community by my silence. You can count on me every single day to use my
voice to stand up, not only to people outside our community who are
oppressing our communities, but those inside our community who aid and
abet the oppressors outside of our community.

There is a man who once asked our beloved prophet Mohammad he

said to him, “What is the best form of jihad or struggle?” And our beloved
prophet Mohammad said to him, “A word of truth in front of a tyrant ruler or
leader that is the best form of jihad.” I hope that we, when we stand up to
those who oppress our communities, that Allah accepts from us that as a
form of Jihad. We are struggling against tyrants and rulers not only abroad
in the Middle East but here in the United States of America, where you
have fascists and white supremacists and Islamophobes reigning in the
White House."

Sisters and brothers we talk a lot about this across the Muslim
community I hear people have this as themes of their conferences,
unity. The best weapon that we have as a Muslim community against
our opposition and those who choose to oppress is unity. Unity Sisters
and Brothers is not just the word that you use that sounds really nice
that you say on a stage Unity is not just a word that unity is tangible it
looks like something it feels like something when I think about the
Islamophobes and those who oppose us as a Muslim community they
don’t actually see differences within us. They don’t care if your are if
you Shiite, or Sunni, Sufi they don’t care if you are from Pakistan or
from Bangladesh they don’t care what your political leanings are when
they comes to attack you from across the world all they know is that
you are a Muslim and they hate everything you stand for. so if the the
Islamophobia industry if those who choose to vandalize to attack
Mosques to attack our leaders are not asking you what method have
you followed when they attack a Muslim sister they don’t stop are on
the street and say excuse me before I attack you I would like to know if
you are from from Pakistan or Bangladesh or from India, they don’t
care. So if the Islamophobes are treating us like we are one
community why are we not acting like we are one community sisters
and brothers? Unity is about survival for the Muslim community. We
will not survive as a community in the face of more adversity and a
potentially horrific time that might come if we as a community are not
united like one Umma like we are supposed to be.

I also want to say to you that when I think about us and our allies
because you my dear sisters and brothers even if we to be united we
are not enough. The best estimate that I have for you is that is that we
may be about five million Muslim Americans in the country that’s on
the high end. There are about 340 million Americans in this country so
you are only 5 million of 340 million. You are not enough on your own.
So we can no longer operate from this perspective that are Muslims
and we work for Muslim issues and we want to protect Muslim
communities and we think that if there were something to happen to
our communities that we just by defending ourselves are somehow
going win or be able push back against any of these polices or
moments that could come to our community that’s not going to
happen. We need to build coalitions we need allies. Every single day
sisters and brothers I dedicate my life and my work to aligning myself
with communities who are marginalized and oppressed in this country.
Building power across communities introducing people to who we as
Muslims by being leaders in social justice movements. by leading in
the resistance to fight for all people in these United States of America.
Our was never a religion about protecting and defending Muslims it is
about protecting and defending all of Allah’s creations. Now if we took
all of the opposition and put them together and we took all of the
Muslims and all of our allies and put us together the opposition is not
more than we are. They don’t have more money than we have They
are not more educated than we are. They don’t love their families more
than we love our families. They don’t love their religious institutions
more than we love ours. They don’t love their leader more than we
love ours so if we are outnumbered but we are out organized by the
opposition,

Sister and brother which brings me to investment resources I am

going to keep it real with the Muslim community. Some people like me
some people don’t like me. And I don’t mind I love everybody, the ones
that like me and the ones that don’t like me. We have enough
Mosques in this country. we have enough buildings in this country. We
have enough bricks in this country unlimited infrastructure in these
United States of America. So I’m doing a call out to you sisters and
brothers and I understand people want to build Mosques. You will not
benefit from ???? if forty fifty sixty years from now if the are no human
beings and Muslim that are praying and worshipping and praying in
those Mosques there if we are not investing in leadership our next
generation and defending. so these multimillion infrastructure projects
are for me in this moment that were in this very critical moment are
distracting us from where we really need to put our resources. We
need to train our young people. We need to hire youth directors in our
Mosques we need to organize and mobilize. We need to do voter
registration and voter engagement we need to build programs in our
communities we need to build mental health services in our
community. Sisters and Brothers often times when I am at fundraiser
and I ‘m not saying that we need to choose I don’t mind to say to me
but Linda you are asking to give something up, something I care about
I am not asking you to do that. A lot a lot of people care about
Kashmir, we care about Palestine, we care about Syria and I care
about those communities too and I care about the horrific things that
are happening to our Muslim sisters and brothers. when you are at a
fund raiser and are giving a thousand dollars to Syria I want you to
continue to give to Syria I want you to continue to alleviate the
suffering of our people but I ask you to say to yourself and I maybe
give a thousand dollars to Syria maybe this time I will give 800 dollars
to Syria and then I am going to take 200 ICNA relief ISNA I am going
to give it CAIR I am going to give it to MAS I am going to give to local
organization doing organizing work I am going to give it to woman’s
organization I am going to give to a local clinic. Sisters and brothers
we need diversify our resources and make sure were are experts
infrastructures in all aspects building just but just building Mosques
building Mosques building Mosques

Sisters and brothers it's been sixteen almost seventeen years since
the attacks of 9/11, and we still find ourselves unprepared in so many
moments. Why sisters and brothers? Why are so unprepared? Why
are we so afraid of this administration, and the potential chaos that
they will ensue on our community? We already saw their potential
when they come out every few weeks, Muslim ban one, Muslim ban
two, Muslim ban three.

They are relentless, they are persistent and consistent and want to
see how much as a community we can endure, and want to see who
are friends are, and how hard we are going to fight back against this
administration. So I ask of you my dear sisters and brothers to support
a whole range of organizations and service within the Muslim
community. When I think about building power I think about brothers
like who is in the room today who is running to be the first Muslim
Governor of the state of Michigan. He is a wonderful brother is an
inspiring brother he is well qualified but he can’t do that you can’t just
sidelines look at the brother what he doing not only does ne he needs
your money. He needs your support in deed and in action and I hope
that you have the tangible opportunity to here at ISNA join him this
evening at 630 pm at Embassy Suites at we have to put he is taking
and putting in public where he is going to be prone to attacks and he is
going to be prone by the opposition also not just by the opposition but
establish democrats who have never to succeed within the Democratic
Party and now we have potential and I hope you provide the support to
him. Sisters and Brothers and I want to also advise us and I am saying
this from a deep place of knowledge of watching our community
organize. Some of us knowledge help advice so our social workers
media professionals some of us are organizers. Some of us are health
professionals. There’s a whole range of skill sets in the Muslims
community so we have to leverage those talents we have to stay in our
lanes if you are not a communications specialist then you are not how
to communicate with the rest of the public. If you are a health
professional than you are not how they should be eating if you are not
social or mental health you are not to be lecturing me about
depression anxiety and fear within the Muslim community .if you are
not a person who has done government if you have never been in that
realm of work Sister and brother I am so proud of the type of talent that
is in our community let us leverage one and let us not be the Jacks of
all trades and the masters of no trades we in the Muslim need to think
about the work we do for the betterment of our community not because
we want to I know what my role I don’t lecture people I am not a
religious scholar with their cause that’s not area of expertise. I am not
going to be the person to tell you how to run a mental health clinic
because I am not a mental I am an organizer. I know how to do social
media and PR that’s what I know what to so if we win we have won
major campaigns incorporating Muslim holidays with the within the
New York City that was a campaign that leveraged every community
member and that is what we need to do on a whole landscape within
the Muslims I will end by saying to my dear sisters and you we have to
stay united we w\h

We have to stay outraged. Do not criticize me when I say that we

as a Muslim community in these United States of America have to be
perpetually outraged every single day. When I wake up in the morning
and I remember who is sitting in the White House I am outraged. This
is not normal sisters and brothers. Those people sitting in the most
powerful seats in this country are not normal. Because when the day
comes you will be responsible for normalizing the is admin Our
number one and top priority is to protect and defend our community. It
is not to assimilate and to please any other people in authority.

So do not ever be those citizens that normalize this administration

because when the day comes that something horrific happens to us or
another community, you will be responsible for normalizing this
administration. Our number one and top priority is to protect and
defend our communities, it is not to assimilate and to please any other
people in authority.

Our obligation is to our young people, is to our women, to make

sure our women are protected in our community, and our top priority,
even higher than all those other priorities, is to please Allah and only
Allah. We are never to cower to the powers that be, we are never to
give up any part of our identity so somebody else can open a door for
us. If a door does not open, guess what we do? We build a new door
and walk through our own door, because we have that right in this
country to also open opportunities for us and other communities. I
want to sat congratulation and insh’allah 54 I ask my new
announcement I am now the former director I was the executive and I
could have been if I wanted it is my organization I helped building
eleven years later I said to me the financial stabilities to 1.2 million
dollar organization. To new young sp they can infuse so I can focus on
other things there is nothing wrong sisters and that we love our he
moved that doesn’t mean you will hear Dr. Said he will but he knew
that the time and give his space to somebody else to a woman to
another young person so I hope that Dr. Said you led that sometimes
moving is the best decision that any of let us let us make the leader
because they are the leaders and let us integrate in the institutions we
have created because we need them now more than so thank you
ISNA thank you for all the leaders that are here and again this lecture
in honor and being a woman to honor the legacy the honestly of
There are a few details about El-Sayed that Philp doesn't mention, obviously because
they would damage the glowing picture he's trying to paint of the guy. For one thing, El-
Sayed is chummy with Linda Sarsour, the hijab-wearing Women's March organizer who
is a vocal proponent of jihad and sharia law (and who has enthusiastically endorsed his
candidacy). At the University of Michigan, El-Sayed was vice-president of the Muslim
Student Association, an affiliate of the Muslim Brotherhood.

His wife wears hijab, a fact that seriously undermines the image he seeks to project,
and her father is a former president and current board member of the Michigan chapter
of the terrorist-linked Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). In 2012, when he
was in med school, El-Sayed received a Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship. Paul Soros,
who died the next year, was George Soros's brother; some sources maintain that the
Soros empire is funding El-Sayed's campaign and grooming him to eventually become
president.