Rasoul Offers Unique Political Perspective to Campus

Sam Rasoul talks to EMU students about his views on current issues in Virginia and the United States. (Photo: David Hawkins)

On Friday, Oct. 3, all EMU students were invited to the President’s reception room to participate in an open forum with Sam Rasoul, the youngest congressional candidate in the country.

Res Judicata, the campus’ student law organization that has recently sponsored the televised presidential debates in Common Grounds, brought Rasoul to campus. They hoped to give students the opportunity to discuss politics with Rasoul, who is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in Virginia’s 6th District, and also to create a setting for serious debate.

Sam Rasoul, the son of two Palestinian immigrants, is anything but a typical candidate for Virginia’s House of Representatives. Rasoul is a second generation American, and his Muslim beliefs also differentiate him from many others in the area. He owns a small business which influences some of the organizations he invisions.

Rasoul’s differences from more stereotypical candidates are, however, part of what makes him most fascinating to students on campus. “He has a very interesting perspective and does not shy away from addressing it,” says sophomore Larisa Zehr. She also described how Rasoul provided depth she felt was missing from recent political debates, saying, “I felt like he acknowledged the complexities of the political environment right now – engaging us in intelligent debate about the best actions to take as voters, members of a democracy, residents of the Shenandoah Valley…and as young people in general.”

Because of the upcoming presidential election, many students have recently found themselves more interested in politics than they might usually be, making open forum style discussions more important than ever. For many students, this is their first opportunity to vote, and Rasoul’s encouragement of young people to take part in a dialogue about their opinions was refreshing. As Zehr said, “It was… wonderful to have a dynamic political discussion on a campus that feels stifled and insulated a lot of the time.”

Rasoul’s youth and unique opinions provided an engaging evening of political debate. Students were given the opportunity to meet a congressional candidate, encouraged to take part in local and national politics, and allowed to freely discuss and explore their own political viewpoints.

Dan Wessner’s comparative government class has extended invitations to three congressional candidates for Virginia’s 6th District, Jamie Lee Allen, Bob Goodlatte, and Sam Rasoul, to have a political discussion on campus.