Harris campaign hires Afghan American to lead Muslim, Arab voter outreach
The presidential campaign of Kamala Harris has hired Nasrina Bargzie, an Afghan-American lawyer, to lead outreach to Muslim and Arab voters, a campaign official has told NBC News.
The selection comes as Vice President Harris travels to Chicago next week for the Democratic National Convention, where mass pro-Palestinian protests are planned to take place against Israel's war on Gaza and US military funding towards Israel.
According to NBC, Bargzie previously worked "in Harris’ White House office until July as a policy adviser on Muslim, Arab and Gaza-related issues", and will continue to work on that during the campaign.
“I am honored to continue my work for the Vice President, advising on a range of critical issues in this election, from democracy and reproductive rights to Muslim and Arab outreach,” Bargzie said in a statement shared with NBC.
“I know the Vice President is fundamentally committed to freedom, justice and peace - and we will work with Americans across the country to help realize those goals and fulfill the promise of America.”
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Harris' rise to the top of the Democratic presidential ticket has led to a surge in energy among Democrat voters. Some progressive activists have also claimed that she has appeared to show more sympathy towards the Palestinians.
However, the vice president's actual policy on many issues including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has yet to appear markedly different from the Biden administration that she's a part of.
Harris has also boasted about her pro-Israel credentials throughout her political career, opting to maintain ties with pro-Israel lobbying groups like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) at a time when other progressives began to distance themselves from such organisations.
The Democratic nominee's team also rejected the idea of accepting an arms embargo on Israel after a group of progressive activists with the "Uncommitted campaign" claimed that Harris was open to a meeting to discuss the topic.
Last week, Harris drew the ire of many pro-Palestinian advocates after silencing a group of protesters during a rally in Detroit, Michigan, an area home to one of the largest concentrations of Arab Americans in the country. The state of Michigan is also a key swing state in the presidential election.
In response to the incident, the group of protesters spoke to Middle East Eye and laid out a plan to disrupt her election rallies across the country because of concerns that she will not pursue meaningful policy changes on Gaza and Israel.
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