Hey team, it's Joelle — Ilhan's campaign manager.
I'm also a high school social studies teacher here in Minneapolis, a proud member of MFT Local 59, and an organizer in my community who has known Ilhan for nearly 10 years, even before she became a leading voice for our movement in Congress.
This is a long email, but as a part of this team and a supporter of our campaign, I wanted to send it to you this morning for a couple of very important reasons. I hope you'll read it.
As we've seen in primaries across the country this cycle, outside money is getting a bit cocky about beating progressives. After making NY-16 the most expensive House primary in history to defeat Jamaal Bowman back in June, they then turned their attention to Cori Bush in Missouri, spending $13.5 million on vicious, racist attack ads to try and defeat her.
On Tuesday night, the super PACs and their billionaire donors got their wish. Cori lost her primary, and with it the working class of our country lost one of its fiercest, most committed allies in Congress.
As one of the few remaining progressive incumbents yet to have their primary this cycle, the focus could still shift to Ilhan over the course of the next few days. It's likely the outside spenders will dump money into Minnesota's 5th district in an attempt to smear Ilhan, using all the vile tactics we've seen them run with before.
So yes. At the end of this email, I'll be asking for your support to fight back against them. But before I do, and before the super PAC cash starts flowing, I wanted to share a bit about Congresswoman Ilhan Omar from my own personal experience.
The Ilhan I know is a policy expert.
Before she ever ran for office, Ilhan was a Senior Policy Aide. As a state legislator, she was the chief author for 38 bills in her first session. And in Congress, she introduced the Zero Waste Act, the Homes for All Act, and the Universal School Meals Act.
The Ilhan I know is an organizer.
Anyone who knows Ilhan has heard her say, "You get what you organize for." And she does. She knocks doors, visits local businesses, meets with grassroots leaders, tours schools, hosts round tables, walks picket lines — the girl is everywhere!
The Ilhan I know is approachable.
Last year, I had the pleasure of giving her a tour of my school. Our first stop was meeting with Muslim student leaders. She took the time to connect with each student, one by one. They still talk about that day and how much it meant to them.
The Ilhan I know loves this community.
Ilhan survived a war. She fled her home and built a new one here. She talks about how when she arrived here, Minnesotans took care of her. She constantly tells me about how humbled and honored she is to serve the community who welcomed her.
The other day, I was on the phone with a voter who plans to vote for our opponent, Don Samuels. I asked him what he liked about Don, and he couldn't give me a single reason.
What he could do, however, was rattle off the tired and typical anti-Ilhan talking points.
I said, "Well, I know Ilhan." And he listened.
Here's the reality, folks. So much of what people think they know about Ilhan is tainted and distorted by the many anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim messages out there. It's not their fault — the messages are everywhere! It's really hard not to internalize them.
It's those biases that the outside money are going to try and lean on in the next five days. And it's likely that they're going to spend millions of dollars to do it.
The Ilhan I know works tirelessly to give back to the community that welcomed her as a refugee. The Ilhan I know introduces sweeping progressive legislation. The Ilhan I know has delivered. The Ilhan I know is the real Ilhan — not the one you see in the cheap, grainy attack ads.
So, long story short — there's a lot of nasty stuff out there. And it might make it hard to know the real Ilhan.
But I do know her. I have for nearly a decade. And I can tell you this — there's no one better to represent our movement in Congress.
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Thank you for reading. And thank you for everything you do — and will do — for Ilhan, for this team, and for our entire movement.
In solidarity,
Joelle Stangler
Campaign Manager, Ilhan for Congress
PAID FOR BY ILHAN FOR CONGRESS
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Ilhan for Congress
PO Box 33079
Washington D.C., 20033
