Press Release
On Saturday, February 11, 2006, the Somali Community in the Washington, DC metro area gathered at the Yorkdale Community Center in Fairfax, VA, in the middle of a snow storm, to support one of their own, Guled Kassim who is a Democratic candidate for the Maryland House of Delegates for District 19 ( Montgomery County, Maryland, USA).
Among the notable guests were the former Vice-President of Somalia, Mohamed Ali Samantar and former Somali Ambassador to the USA, Mohamoud Xaaji Nur.
In addition to Ahmed Abdullahi Elmi “Bulbul” who coordinated the program, those who took the microphone include the former Vice-President Mohamed Ali Samantar, Said Haji Osman, Mumin A. Barre and Mohamed Ibrahim Sagal
After thanking his family, friends and everyone else for their support, he gave a targeted speech peppered with humorous anecdotes about his life while growing up in District 19 of Montgomery County, Maryland.
The evening ended with the tunes of Shigshigow, a local Somali singer and songwriter.
Kassim is running against several others candidates for the Delegate seat. Unlike the other candidates, however, he grew up in District 19, is a long time political activist, a former United States Marine, and brings to the campaign integrity and unwavering commitment to serve the ethnically diverse community he wishes to represent in the Maryland House of Delegates.
The American Dream of Opportunity and the American Value of Responsibility are at the core of Kassim’s campaign .
Kassim offers new, innovative, and progressive ideas to expand opportunities in health care, education, affordable housing, and protection of the environment.
During his service to the community, Kassim has been involved in, among others, District 19 Democratic club, Montgomery County Muslim Council, African-American Democratic club, Somali-American Community Association, Montgomery County Young Democrats, Mont. Co. NAACP, Tivoli Community Association, and Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH).
For more information and to help the campaign, please visit the website.
Kassim for Montgomery - Mumin Barre, Treasurer
www.kassimformontgomery.org
