Rashida Tlaib edged out opponents in a crowded pool of Democratic candidates (MEE/Ali Harb)
DETROIT, United States – Palestinian American progressive activist Rashida Tlaib became on Tuesday the first Muslim woman to be elected to Congress.
Tlaib, a former state legislator known for her environmental advocacy, edged out opponents in a crowded pool of Democratic candidates in the primaries in August.
Her district, which includes parts of Detroit and some working class surrounding suburbs, is home to a safe Democratic seat.
On Tuesday, she fended off a last minute write-in campaign from Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones, whom Tlaib defeated in the primaries.
In an interview with Middle East Eye after her electoral victory, Tlaib expressed happiness about the outcome but cautioned that a lot more work needs to be done in Congress.
"It's like happy chaos. It's exciting. There's just so much more to do," Tlaib told MEE. "I feel like Im trying to celebrate and be in this moment and its pretty incredible but at the same I know that theres so much more work to do," she said.
Tlaib added that she is prepared to take on the "biggest bully", referring to President Donald Trump.
Her first priority as a Congresswoman, she said, is to introduce and expand civil rights legislation.
Tlaib will succeed civil rights icon Congressman John Conyers who resigned from the House of Representatives last year after sexual harassment allegations, having served there for 52 years.
Delivering the results to supporters on Tuesday night, Tlaib, a mother of two, introduced herself with her newly earned title. "I am Congresswoman-elect Rashida Tlaib."
She stressed the importance of the timing of her victory, during Trump's presidency with anti-immigrant and Islamophobic rhetoric on the rise.
"It happened now, at a time where we just feel there's so much hate in our country," she said.
Enthusiastic support
Tlaib supporter Rose Khalifa said the Palestinian American activists victory proves that hard-working citizens can be elected to positions where they can help people.
"I have known Rashida for the last 15 years, and on a routine basis my encounters with her are always about serving the community, making the changes and fighting for those who do not have the resources to fight for themselves," Khalifa told MEE.
"Being the voice for those who do not have [the] ability, or the knowledge with which to pursue the change that they need for their community."
Rashida Tlaib greets supporters with her mother at an election night rally (MEE/Ali Harb)
Fiana Arbab, a 23-year old supporter similarly highlighted how much Tlaib's electoral victory meant to her and her parents, who immigrated to the US shortly after the 9/11 attacks.
"I'm just so grateful that she exists, and she is so powerful with her existence, paving the pathway for all of us, making sure that we're safe and we're equal in this country that really was meant to be all of ours collectively," Arbab said of Tlaib.
Tlaib's brother, Rashad Elabed, told MEE that being the eldest of 14 siblings contributed to her leadership qualities.
"She's been the toughest out of all my siblings," he said. "We're all different personalities … It gave her a sense of people, you know?"
Tlaib's platform
Although Tlaib ran a campaign focused on local issues, including raising the minimum wage, increasing home ownership and improving public education for her constituents, Tlaib has not avoided the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Late in August, she broke with Washington norms of backing the two-state solutions, endorsing one state in Israel and the Palestinian territories with equal rights for all citizens.
"It has to be one state. Separate but equal does not work. Im only 42 years old, but my teachers were of that generation that marched with Martin Luther King. This whole idea of a two-state solution, it doesnt work," Tlaib told In These Times magazine in an interview at the time.
Her position on the issue cost her the endorsement of liberal Jewish American lobby J Street, which pulled its support for her.
Tlaib told MEE in back in March that, as a Detroiter, she sees parallels between Palestinians' struggle for justice and the civil rights movement in the United States.
She added that she would bring a "unique perspective" to Congress by advocating for equal rights for both Palestinians and Israelis.
"I have been very clear to everyone who has asked about this issue that I see everything through a human rights lens," Tlaib said.
Tlaib will be the second Palestinian American in Congress after Justin Amash, a Republican representing western Michigan who won re-election on Tuesday.
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