[
[EP Editor’s Note: Another example of hate driving out the good]
By Hannan Adely, NorthJersey.com
She was the first female Muslim mayor in the United States. Then she was the first of two Muslims — both women — elected to the New Jersey State legislature.
Now, Assemblywoman Sadaf Jaffer, D-Montgomery, has decided that she will not seek reelection after just one term.
In an interview with The Record and NorthJersey.com, Jaffer said she had face sustained harassment both online and in opponents’ attack ads because of her religious background. She will not seek re-election because she doesn’t want her family to put her family, including her young daughter, through another ugly election cycle.
Jaffer’s experience underscores a larger problem of harassment and bigotry that Muslim women in the public eye often face. The Assemblywoman, in her interview, talks about ways to make the journey easier for other women as they run for and serve in office.
Assemblywoman Sadaf Jaffer, PhD, who represents New Jersey’s 16th Legislative District is a Princeton University Researcher and Lecturer in South Asian Studies. Passionate advocate for racial, economic, and gender justice.
Every campaign is a commitment. It is a sacrifice for family. I just decided this was best in terms of being able to focus on my daughter and, you know, not having to subject myself and my family, including my daughter, to the type of harassment I get as a Muslim official, as a woman of color running for office.
What type of haassment did you face?
It’s a slow drip of messages, comments, emails, tweets, Facebook comments that give the impression that my participation is not welcome. There are questions about my intentions. Unfortunately, my political opponents have also used that type of messaging against me in the campaign for assembly last year. My opponents had television ads, text messages, everything saying Sadaf Jaffer is a radical, reject extremism don’t vote for her, that sort of thing.
We all know it just takes one person to have a negative reaction to that sort of messaging and someone can get hurt. When I was making my decision there had been a series of state legislators whose homes had been shot into, including one where a 10-year-old girl was sleeping. Just thinking about that environment, I decided to focus on keeping my family safe and protected both emotionally and physically.
If you liked this post, you’ll love our daily environmental newsletter, EnviroPolitics. It’s packed daily with the latest news, commentary, and legislative updates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware…and beyond. Don’t take our word for it, try it free for an entire month. No obligation.
