Collective Civic Power of Muslim Women

The Muslim immigrant community in Minnesota is very diverse: South Asians like Pakistanis, Indians, and Bangladeshis; Arabs from various Middle Eastern and North African countries; Somalis, Ethiopians, and Eritreans from East Africa. Each brought their own preconceived notions about politics and civic engagement from their country of origin — many of them negative. Most have come from countries where politics was considered a dirty game played by corrupt politicians who were not to be trusted and certainly did not represent the interests of the common people. These experiences stayed with communities even after migrating to the United States. Added to that was the intimidation of learning the process and lacking representation. Having gone to college here, I was somewhat familiar with the process, but I shared the hesitation of the immigrant community and did not really feel that I had a voice that was loud enough to be heard.

When an American-born Muslim decided to run for local office in 2016, it gave my Muslim community in Blaine the perfect opportunity to engage in the civic process. I, along with many in my community, was extremely excited as this was the first time that we felt represented by someone who not only looked like us but also reflected our values and issues. We were hopeful that we would have someone who could speak on our behalf. This campaign connected the Muslim community more to other Minnesotans, making us less isolated and unreachable. When the candidate asked for my help doing outreach in our community, I could find no reason to say no.

In this age of WhatsApp and social media, one-on-one conversations are still key in building relationships. My task was to reach out to the Muslims in my district, register them to vote, introduce the candidate to them, and build his supporters. Luckily, building community is what gives me strength and energizes me. I started by reaching out to my friends first and casually talked to them about the importance of the upcoming elections. I then reached out to the women I saw at parties and Friday prayers weekly. I started door knocking on weekends. I built enough of a contact list to start planning how I would keep them in touch about next steps. The mosque was already doing caucus trainings, but I felt like they were not being widely attended by women.

What would help the women see their collective power, and what would bring them all together in a non-intimidating environment?

I decided to host a lunch at my house and created a guest list of over 70 women (much to my husband’s dismay). Though the invitation said it was a casual lunch, I did mention that we would talk about the caucus and the upcoming elections. About 60 women came to this gathering, and it was fabulous. They were comfortable in the setting and the friendly atmosphere. They could ask questions without being judged. There were a few women who had become delegates in the past who explained that words like “caucus” just meant a meeting of neighbors and spoke to how simple the process was. I showed others how to look up their precincts and then could connect them to their friends who would be in the same room on caucus evening. I talked to them about how they could become delegates and what the process and commitment was. I encouraged them to talk to their spouses and adult children and ask them to become delegates as well. We did a walk-through of what would happen at caucus night and what they needed to do to become delegates. This really made them comfortable and brought them on board. The women felt empowered, strong, and most importantly, we all felt we could make a difference in this election.

The real show was at caucus night when over 100 women showed up with their families to exercise their rights, bring forward their issues and discuss them with their neighbors. I felt we had made a mark. 

Fast forward a month, and the COVID-19 pandemic hit, changing the game plan for the senate district conventions and how the next steps in the 2020 election process would be played out.

Before, I was telling the women that we would all be together at the convention and that we could help each other, but all that changed now. We were all by ourselves, with many new questions to figure out. As the officials struggled with plans, so did I, wondering how to get my community to take the next steps without being physically present, without seeing them at the mosque, without door knocking, without getting together over lunch. Like everyone else, I did not like the fact that we did not know how this would shape out, but I had faith. I knew that like I did before the pandemic, I could figure out how to stay connected with my community and help them take the next steps. There was no backing down now, even with all the unknowns.

Then we learnt that the voting for the senate district conventions would happen through email ballots, and I felt better as there was more visibility into the next steps, and I could help my community with what to expect. Again, the WhatsApp messages, phone calls, texts on when the ballot is coming out, whom it will be from, what the subject line will be, and what we needed to do. I knew there would be some who would still need help, so I made myself available for individual assistance. I received several calls and was grateful for the women’s commitment. They were taking their responsibilities as delegates seriously and voting.

I kept checking in to make sure that everyone was voting, and as I got responses in the affirmative, I felt so elated and accomplished. I felt such a strong bond with my fellow Muslim sisters — we could accomplish so much if we had good intentions, good leadership, and a good plan. As I write this, over 90% Muslim women delegates have voted in the senate district convention ballot and are ready for whatever comes to them next. We, the Muslim women of Blaine, are a force to be reckoned with.