Sam Rasoul, the only elected Muslim representative in Virginia Assembly, who resigned from Democratic leadership post, has called on all sides to cast away hate and fear to find common ground.
The Democratic politician’s comments come amid a polarized political climate and hundreds of acts of hate cime against ethnic and religious communities.
The long divisive election campaigns, culminating in a stunning election victory of Republican Donald Trump over Democrat Hillary Clinton, continue to divide communities living in Virginia’s urban areas and cities.
“It is evident based on these campaigns that we can’t be fighting hate and fear with hate and fear. So we need to be able to reject that on all sides,” he told Views and News.
“We need to encourage people to organize, come together — we can together on our common values and try to unite folks from all walks of life,” added Rasoul.
Rasoul, 35, stressed the need for “radical changes” in connecting with working class America.
“We were sent a mandate on Election Day that we have to completely rethink the way we do business,” he said later, according to The Washington Post.
“I love our platform, but when we want to use the same negative campaign tactics, when we do not try to genuinely listen and build trust with people from all walks of life, we’re not really being sincere about the values we espouse,” he said candidly, according to the Post
“I think that’s why trust has eroded with time, and I think people have lost trust with both parties,” he added.
