I am the first Muslim elected to the Texas Legislature | Opinion
State Rep.-elect Salman Bhojani will become the first Muslim elected to the Texas legislature. Back then, I was not a politician. I was working retail, making $6 an hour, while attending college. As a Muslim immigrant to America, I watched in horror as terrorists attacked my country in the name of my religion. On that day, my heart broke twice — once for my nation and once for my faith.
In 2018, I made headlines by becoming the first Muslim and the first person of color elected to the Euless City Council. This year, I became the first Muslim and the first South Asian elected as a state representative in Texas. And starting in January, I will be one of the first two Muslims to serve in the Texas Legislature. Suleman Lalani won election in Fort Bend County. He will share this honor with me.
But in recent years, we have seen hatred and Islamophobia dominate our politics — Muslim travel bans, anti-Islamic rhetoric and escalating hate crimes against our immigrant neighbors. The only way our American experiment will flourish is if we learn to work together across our differences. Democracy depends on community. Democracy depends on solidarity. Democracy depends on loving our neighbors.
When Paul was asked to summarize Christian teachings, he said: “The whole law can be summed up in this one command: ‘Love thy neighbor as thyself.’ ”
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