Rashida Tlaib



Rashida Tlaib (@rashidatlaib), the oldest of 14 children, was born on the 24th of July in Detroit, Michigan to Palestinian parents. A member of the Democratic Socialists of America, she is one of two DSA members (the other is Alexandria Ocasio Cortez) in the House of Representative’s and, along with Rep. Ilhan Omar, the first Muslim Congresswoman. She completed her bachelors degree in political science from Wayne State University before continuing on to study for her JD. After finishing her JD in 2004, she began working in politics for her state representative. In 2008, when he retired, she was encouraged to run for his seat, which she did and ended up winning with 90% of the vote. She left the government in 2014 and began working for the nonprofit, Sugar Law Center, which provides free legal representation to workers. Even before she was on the national stage, she was a strong advocate against Trump and his policies, protesting at a rally of his in 2016 in Michigan before she was thrown out. In 2018, she announced her run for Congress and when she won, became the first Palestinian woman in Congress. Her politics follow the agenda of the Democratic Socialists of America and she is a strong advocate for workers rights. Given her heritage, it is no surprise that she supports the Palestinian right of return for occupied lands and she also openly supports the BDS movement. In addition to her support of Palestinian rights, she has also been vocally critical of Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen. In regards to her faith, she has acknowledged that some people believe she is not “Muslim enough” but believes that “Allah understands and knows she is doing things reflective of Islam”