On Muslim Lobby Day at the State House, some of the most outspoken, curious, and determined activists weren’t yet old enough to vote.
A year after the Trump administration first attempted to restrict travel to the United States by citizens from seven Muslim-majority nations and just weeks after a third version of the travel ban finally went into effect, Muslim youth, their families, and community leaders spent Tuesday morning learning about the legislative process and how to get involved.
“We have tons of young people saying we need to be part of this political process,” said Nazia Ashraful, government affairs director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Massachusetts, or CAIR-Massachusetts, which sponsored the event. “They’re becoming involved and getting their parents to be involved — many of whom are immigrants and never thought they needed to get involved, also for reasons of feeling fearful and that it’s safer almost to be quieter.”