Friend,

When I was five years old, I fled the Iranian revolution with my family, carrying nothing more than a stuffed elephant.

Today, I'm running for Congress.

The fact that I'm here today is an American Dream realized, friend. It's a testament to the value of education, hard work, and determination. It's a testament to the sacrifices my parents made to build a better life for their children, and to the strength of the communities we find and the ones we create for ourselves.

It wasn't always easy. When I arrived in the United States, I spoke no English. I was the only brown girl in my kindergarten class; I experienced harassment, prejudice, and outright discrimination.  I was undocumented until I was 16 years old. 

But these challenges helped make me the person I am today. They renewed my determination to build a better nation, where no one has to face the same barriers our family went through.

So I worked hard. I went to law school. I spent more than two decades fighting for civil rights, as co-president of the LGBT Bar Association of Los Angeles, as a board member of the Human Rights Campaign, and as a member of the City of West Hollywood's LGBTQ+ Advisory Board. 

Then, in 2020, we made history. I was elected to the West Hollywood City Council, becoming the first woman of color in history to hold that office, as well as the first openly-LGBTQ Iranian to hold public office in the world.

Today, I have the honor of serving our City as Mayor. I go to work everyday, fighting to make sure everyone has the same opportunities to thrive, regardless of skin color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, nationality, age, disability, or socioeconomic status. And with our civil liberties under unprecedented attack, that fight is more urgent now than ever.

I'm running for Congress to be a champion for all of us, friend, because I know what it's like to feel powerless. Will you join me?

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With gratitude,

— Sepi