hat do London’s Mayor Sadiq Khan, Hadia Tajik, former Minister of Culture of Norway and Ayesha Yaqoob Mahmood, Director, Asian American Advocacy Fund (AAAF) in Georgia have in common? All of them have immigrant roots from Pakistan and they are all contributing to serving their communities in different ways. They represent the stories of immigrants or children of immigrants and are in their own individual way harbingers of the future in the countries they live in. A common thread in their stories is drive to success against all odds. “It can’t be done” is not in their vocabulary.
“Fraud! Fraud! Fraud!” are the sounds coming out of some corners after the 2020 U.S. general elections did not go their way. They are so loud that papers, like the Financial Times of London, across the Atlantic have been publishing a series of articles on the drama unfolding in the state of Georgia. These unfounded allegations sound very much like the chants of “War! War! War!” by the young hotheads in Margaret Mitchell’s epic novel “Gone with the Wind,” which was set in Clayton County, Georgia during the Civil War.
“Clayton County, do you know how powerful you are?” recently asked Raphael Warnock, U.S. Senate candidate in Georgia. He went on to say: “You were the county that pushed us over the finish line and flipped Georgia blue.”
Analysts are finding that the neighboring Cobb County, once a bastion of power for former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich had also begun trending against his own Republican party. When the analysts dug deeper, they found that a new political force—the Asian American Voters—is emerging in states like Georgia. A New York Times report found that the “Asian-American population in the state has doubled in two decades, and many live in the Atlanta suburbs, which voted for Joseph R. Biden Jr. by large margins.” Washington Post reported that a record Asian American turnout helped Biden win Georgia. And National Public Radio reported that: “By some counts, AAPI voters nearly doubled compared to 2016, and Aisha Yaqoob Mahmood of the Asian American Advocacy Fund says that's no fluke.“
AAAF is one of the vanguards of the new political forces emerging in U.S. It is a small, focused, and disciplined organization, which helps turn out voters for progressive candidates and causes. AAAF applies criteria, which includes demonstration of a track record of advocating for communities of color. Imaginative leadership, a majority of whom are educated women, is the strength of organizations like AAAF. With skills honed over a series of elections in past years.
Why are these young leaders, especially women so successful? Could it be their education or is it because they don’t fit the immigrant stereotypes of being submissive? What are their motivations? Peek into the profiles of some of the eleven AAAF leaders and you will find the clues. For instance, AAAF Director Mahmood’s experiences “strengthened her desire for justice for all marginalized people, including Muslim, immigrants, and refugees.” Similarly, AAAF Gwinnett County Campaign Organizer Hiba Rizvi “strives for a fair and progressive future for all Georgians.” AAAF Angelina (Thuy Hang Tran) is “passionate about convening politics, law, and education to further human rights and sustainability.” She wants to “cross-pollinate her experiences to assist marginalized communities in pockets around the globe.”
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with the single step,” said the Chinese philosopher Laozi. That is perhaps how Sadiq Khan became London’s Mayor. Similar must have been Hadia Tajik’s odyssey who at 29 “became the youngest minister ever to serve in the Norwegian government, as well as the first Muslim and Asian member of Norwegian cabinet.”
Clearly demographics are changing societies around the world and something is working for groups like AAAF in Georgia. Their efforts may or may not pay off as handsomely during the January 5th, 2021 runoff elections. It will be difficult, however, to deny what they have been able to achieve so far.
Denial is often the inability to accept reality. However, those who are taking their jobs seriously and putting in an honest day’s work accept the results for what they are. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger who has been the recipient of much of the president’s ire said in an email that the incumbent president’s loss was simply the result of “changing demographics,” which has made the state more politically diverse and competitive.
A Financial Times, December 16, 2020, Supplement “The World Ahead” contains demographic related charts with the heading “The shape of the age to come” showing that Gen Z (those born during 1997-2012) will play a pivotal role in the years ahead. So, what happened in Georgia has already happened in places like London and Norway.
About a century ago, the shepherd’s pie was perhaps one of the most popular dishes in UK. Today, the humble chicken tikka masala is considered UK’s national dish. Guess why? Demographics.
Two hundred and fifty years ago, in December 1770, during the “Argument in Defense of the Soldiers in the Boston Massacre Trials,” John Adams, who later served as the 2nd U.S. President said: “Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.” So, if facts are stubborn things, then the demographic facts certainly seem to be their first cousins.
“Georgia on my mind,” is perhaps what most people were thinking this general election. And so also the song Rainy Night in Georgia” made popular by Brook Benton.
Baby, it's a rainy night in Georgia
I feel it's rainin' all over the world
Could it be that demographics facts are “rainin' all over the world?”
a global affairs media network
About Stubborn Demographic Facts
December 18, 2020
W
hat do London’s Mayor Sadiq Khan, Hadia Tajik, former Minister of Culture of Norway and Ayesha Yaqoob Mahmood, Director, Asian American Advocacy Fund (AAAF) in Georgia have in common? All of them have immigrant roots from Pakistan and they are all contributing to serving their communities in different ways. They represent the stories of immigrants or children of immigrants and are in their own individual way harbingers of the future in the countries they live in. A common thread in their stories is drive to success against all odds. “It can’t be done” is not in their vocabulary.
“Fraud! Fraud! Fraud!” are the sounds coming out of some corners after the 2020 U.S. general elections did not go their way. They are so loud that papers, like the Financial Times of London, across the Atlantic have been publishing a series of articles on the drama unfolding in the state of Georgia. These unfounded allegations sound very much like the chants of “War! War! War!” by the young hotheads in Margaret Mitchell’s epic novel “Gone with the Wind,” which was set in Clayton County, Georgia during the Civil War.
“Clayton County, do you know how powerful you are?” recently asked Raphael Warnock, U.S. Senate candidate in Georgia. He went on to say: “You were the county that pushed us over the finish line and flipped Georgia blue.”
Analysts are finding that the neighboring Cobb County, once a bastion of power for former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich had also begun trending against his own Republican party. When the analysts dug deeper, they found that a new political force—the Asian American Voters—is emerging in states like Georgia. A New York Times report found that the “Asian-American population in the state has doubled in two decades, and many live in the Atlanta suburbs, which voted for Joseph R. Biden Jr. by large margins.” Washington Post reported that a record Asian American turnout helped Biden win Georgia. And National Public Radio reported that: “By some counts, AAPI voters nearly doubled compared to 2016, and Aisha Yaqoob Mahmood of the Asian American Advocacy Fund says that's no fluke.“
AAAF is one of the vanguards of the new political forces emerging in U.S. It is a small, focused, and disciplined organization, which helps turn out voters for progressive candidates and causes. AAAF applies criteria, which includes demonstration of a track record of advocating for communities of color. Imaginative leadership, a majority of whom are educated women, is the strength of organizations like AAAF. With skills honed over a series of elections in past years.
Why are these young leaders, especially women so successful? Could it be their education or is it because they don’t fit the immigrant stereotypes of being submissive? What are their motivations? Peek into the profiles of some of the eleven AAAF leaders and you will find the clues. For instance, AAAF Director Mahmood’s experiences “strengthened her desire for justice for all marginalized people, including Muslim, immigrants, and refugees.” Similarly, AAAF Gwinnett County Campaign Organizer Hiba Rizvi “strives for a fair and progressive future for all Georgians.” AAAF Angelina (Thuy Hang Tran) is “passionate about convening politics, law, and education to further human rights and sustainability.” She wants to “cross-pollinate her experiences to assist marginalized communities in pockets around the globe.”
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with the single step,” said the Chinese philosopher Laozi. That is perhaps how Sadiq Khan became London’s Mayor. Similar must have been Hadia Tajik’s odyssey who at 29 “became the youngest minister ever to serve in the Norwegian government, as well as the first Muslim and Asian member of Norwegian cabinet.”
Clearly demographics are changing societies around the world and something is working for groups like AAAF in Georgia. Their efforts may or may not pay off as handsomely during the January 5th, 2021 runoff elections. It will be difficult, however, to deny what they have been able to achieve so far.
Denial is often the inability to accept reality. However, those who are taking their jobs seriously and putting in an honest day’s work accept the results for what they are. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger who has been the recipient of much of the president’s ire said in an email that the incumbent president’s loss was simply the result of “changing demographics,” which has made the state more politically diverse and competitive.
A Financial Times, December 16, 2020, Supplement “The World Ahead” contains demographic related charts with the heading “The shape of the age to come” showing that Gen Z (those born during 1997-2012) will play a pivotal role in the years ahead. So, what happened in Georgia has already happened in places like London and Norway.
About a century ago, the shepherd’s pie was perhaps one of the most popular dishes in UK. Today, the humble chicken tikka masala is considered UK’s national dish. Guess why? Demographics.
Two hundred and fifty years ago, in December 1770, during the “Argument in Defense of the Soldiers in the Boston Massacre Trials,” John Adams, who later served as the 2nd U.S. President said: “Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.” So, if facts are stubborn things, then the demographic facts certainly seem to be their first cousins.
“Georgia on my mind,” is perhaps what most people were thinking this general election. And so also the song Rainy Night in Georgia” made popular by Brook Benton.
Baby, it's a rainy night in Georgia
I feel it's rainin' all over the world
Could it be that demographics facts are “rainin' all over the world?”
