Regardless of the Islamophobia, where we have gone wrong in the Democratic Party and the American left is to play wholeheartedly into identity politics, which divides us just as much as it can unite us. We need to take a long hard look. We can celebrate our identities and our heritage, we can understand, you know, but we don't need to be melting pot. We can be a solid ball with all the different pieces.
Sam RasoulFalling into Donald Trump's trap, or being distracted every time he sends out a tweet is really not leadership. And, I would point you to a historical example, Italy's Donald Trump, Silvio Berlusconi, a larger-than-life personality. People didn't know what to do until somebody came up with a novel idea: Why don't we ignore him? They completely ignored the personality, the man, and focused on the issues. He was defeated twice. Maybe we can learn from that lesson.
Sam RasoulIt's been harder for me for sure being Muslim American, it's been harder for me for sure being the first Muslim ever elected anything here in Virginia, but it's actually made me into a much better person. So, the neat thing is while it's more difficult for people like me maybe to get elected in certain parts of our country, we prove that it's possible. And, that's something to be commended here in our country, that people from all walks of life can be involved and that's not the case even in some developed countries.
Sam RasoulWhen we talk about defending Muslims, defending women, we're automatically by default excluding someone, but when we talk about defending liberty, when we talk about defending the freedoms that are enshrined within our founding documents, that is inclusive of every American. That's a message the American left needs to learn as we move forward.
Sam RasoulYou bring up identity politics and I think that this is really causing a divide in the American left where we're rallying too much around identities. We should celebrate our heritage, we should organize by identity, but we shouldn't advocate and push for certain identities. We shouldn't talk about women suffrage, or plight of Muslims, or refugees; we should talk about our common American values.
Sam RasoulWe need to be fighting and rallying around the common American values. This is where the Democratic Party needs to learn and grow as we move forward.
Sam RasoulAs liberals are puppets in Donald Trump's show right now, all he needs to do is create any distraction and all of a sudden, the whole country is completely distracted, including the American left. We need to be laser focused on figuring out what are our values, what do we really want to be defending on the left, and how are we going to do that, coming up with the plan and moving forward.
Sam Rasoul