About This Episode:
We are kicking off international women’s month with a very special guest. We are interviewing Bushra Amiwala, the youngest Muslim elected official in the United States who gained national attention in 2018 at age 19, running against a 16-year incumbent to serve on the Cook County Board of Commissioners 13th District. In this episode, we explore her experience running a campaign while in college, lessons she’s learned while serving on the Board of Education and representation of women in technology.
Special Guest Bio:
At the age of 19, she announced her candidacy for the Cook County Board of Commissioners, with the goal to serve as a voice for her underrepresented generation and other marginalized communities. Her campaign has been covered nationally by outlets such as the Chicago Tribune, The New York Times,Teen Vogue, and landing her on the cover of TIME magazine. Bushra recently went down in the Chicago History Museum as the Youngest Muslim Elected in the United States.
Her leadership has extended far beyond her campaign as she’s inspired countless others to increase their civic participation. As a result, she’s been named Glamour magazine’s College Woman of the Year, Seventeen magazine’s Voice of the Year, and internationally as CosmoGirl’s Change Maker of the Year. Bushra was awarded the Public Peace Ambassador award sponsored by the United Nations, and has been named as one of the 18 people to remember from 2018.
In addition to these awards, Bushra is the subject of an original PBS documentary called And She Could be Next, the female candidate on Amazon’s RUN the Series, is currently filming for a Hulu documentary and she has made hundreds of TV and radio appearances, including outlets such as Fox, NPR, ABC, and PBS.
Bushra has spoken at countless colleges and universities, organizations and international companies, with live audiences ranging from 25 to 15,000 people. She is recent graduate from DePaul University and serves on the Board of Directors of the Indo-American Democratic Organization (IADO), GenerationVote, Women Empowering Women in Illinois Legislation (WeWill) and SheVotesIL. She holds her elected seat on the Skokie Board of Education, as its youngest member.
To learn more about Bushra:
Website: https://bushraamiwala.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bushraamiwala/?hl=en
Change Making and Activism: Interview with Bushra Amiwala | Impossible Things Before Breakfast podcast - Listen or read transcript on Metacast
