Iman Jodeh: Palestinian Muslim working to make the “American Dream” a reality for all
When Iman Jodeh was elected to Colorado’s House of Representatives in 2020 she became the state’s first Muslim lawmaker. Rep. Jodeh, who is the daughter of Palestinian immigrants, ran her campaign on progressive platforms and was endorsed by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
Rep. Jodeh took some time to answer Palestine in America’s questions about her background, political work, and goals.
Palestine in America (PiA): What balad(s) is your family from?
Iman Jodeh (IJ): Qalonia and Lifta.
PiA: What is your earliest memory of participating in political work?
IJ: I think like many Palestinians around the world, we were taught to always defend those without a voice. So from standing in rallies that believe in human rights for Palestinians, to fighting occupation in Tibet, to fighting for women’s rights, to marching in Black Lives Matter protests—advocacy has manifested itself on multiple platforms. But even as a child, I remember conjuring up the courage to challenge conventional thinking about oppression and putting myself in spaces that allowed decision-makers to have the opportunity to learn about the most misunderstood region of the world and the people that call it home.
PiA: How does Palestine play a role in your work?
IJ: As someone who identifies as a practicing Muslim, Palestinian, American, woman of color, I have inherited a lens of social justice that is at the core of my existence. Having the ability to straddle a dual identity — as a second class citizen in Palestine and as an American in the United States — I’ve been able to advocate from a position of lived experiences that provide kinship in oppression.
When invited to join the Colorado Democratic Black Caucus as the first voting member that does not identify as Black, I issued the following statement that I think encapsulates the continued struggle:
“It is with great excitement that I get to share that I am a member of the Colorado Black Democratic Legislative Caucus!
Caucuses — often formed along racial, ethnic, or religious identities — are important organizations legislators can join to pursue a shared agenda. As I will be the only Palestinian American and only Muslim in the Colorado legislature, I don’t fit in any caucus 100%. I’m grateful the members of the Black Caucus recognized the kinship we share in our lived experiences and policy priorities and invited me to join and subsequently unanimously approved my inclusion as a voting member of the caucus.
When I am in Palestine, I am a second-class citizen. I am detained without cause, my neighbors are beaten, caged, forced through segregated checkpoints, live behind a wall, and stripped of their civil rights — and regardless of my US passport, I am not immune to any of this. While oppressed people have their own realities and experiences unique to their identities, my experiences in Palestine resemble those of my Black siblings here in Aurora — in my own backyard. There is a reason phrases like “from Gaza to Ferguson” are widely used — we are kin in our oppression.
And in my own backyard, as a Muslim American, Islamophobia transcends skin color. As the official spokesperson for the largest and oldest mosque in the Rocky Mountain region, located in HD41, where 80% of our 5,000 person congregation is African or African American, it is important to me to be part of a caucus where I can continue to lift up their voices.
Thank you, again, to the members of the Black Caucus for making a place for me and the communities I represent, for recognizing our kinship, and for your steadfast solidarity.”
PiA: What’s a Palestinian adverb, quote, person, poem, or song that you often reflect on in this work?
IJ: It's actually a verse from the Quran. “O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you.” - 49:13
I think about this verse often as I sit in the hallow halls in our own temple to democracy. “...nations and tribes that ye may know one another…” I remember this when I think about the people I represent, knowing we are not a monolith and that we are all fighting to make life better for all people.
My father used to reference that verse when he would give the benediction in the Colorado House and Senate every session. He would take me with him as a child, and now I sit under that dome as a lawmaker and look at where he once stood, as his voice echoes in my work.
PiA: What do you hope to achieve in your line of work?
IJ: I ran to make the American dream a reality for everyone. I am the product of that American dream. But that dream was dreamt by my parents, Palestinian immigrants and refugees, nearly 50 years ago. Today, that American dream is becoming harder and harder to realize with the rising cost of living, unattainable healthcare, our climate crisis, and crippling student debt. I want to help create a world where jobs, education, sustainable climate solutions, housing, civil rights, access to quality health care are all basic human rights, not luxuries afforded to you based on the color of your skin, zip code, residency status, or religion.
PiA: Many times, Palestinians endure marginalization on all sides of the aisle; what obstacles have you faced, and how have you overcome them?
IJ: I have learned that the more I can put myself in places where decisions are being made, then the more I can start to dismantle systemic racism around what it is to be a Muslim woman and a Palestinian American.
For example, over the past six years, I have worked on the frontlines during each legislative session fighting for progressive legislation and against regressive legislation. This meant that I would have the opportunity to testify in front of lawmakers wearing different hats — the spokeswoman for the Colorado Muslim Society, the largest and oldest mosque in the Rocky Mountain Region, or as the community advocate and liaison at the Interfaith Alliance of Colorado, or as a board member of the Women’s Lobby of Colorado. I was able to do so by providing a lens on bills that allowed lawmakers a chance to be exposed to views that help them realize we have shared values around issues that are not exclusive to one group or another.
I am fortunate enough to have spent 12 years heading my own non-profit, Meet the Middle East, as a platform to educate the public about Islam and the Middle East. Traveling with high schoolers, young professionals, and adults throughout Palestine, Jordan, and Egypt through the lens of educational immersion experiences, rather than convincing travelers of one narrative, has also reinforced my belief in education. Creating a platform for Americans to experience life on the ground, putting people in their path that gives them an unobstructed view of the region, and empowering them to make their own decision about the geopolitical of the Middle East, is a much more powerful tool than relying solely on emotion.
PiA: What’s your advice to folks looking to deepen their political journeys?
IJ: Be unapologetic for who you are. Your lived experiences give you a sense of advocacy that is just and valid. The ability to practice in our civil society is not a luxury but your right.
Travel. If you have the opportunity to travel safely, challenge yourself to go places that are out of your comfort zone. You will learn and expand your knowledge like never before.
Always be open to learn. Setting the expectation with yourself that you are always learning and that education does not always exist in a brick and mortar school, but through lived experiences, books, conversation, breaking bread with people — keep your heart and mind open to recognizing when these are learning and teaching moments for yourself.
PiA: How would you define solidarity?
IJ: Knowing that people have my back when I’m not around.
PiA: What does a free world mean to you?
IJ: That all people are created equal. That we the people means all people.
