DEARBORN HEIGHTS — State Representative Rashida Tlaib of Michigan’s 6th House District and State Representative David Knezek of Michigan’s 11th House District both delivered speeches in support of community activist Rashid Baydoun’s bid for public office at a fundraiser for his campaign Tuesday, Mar. 25 at Lava Java Café in Dearborn Heights. 

Baydoun, 28, is seeking the position of state representative in  Michigan’s 11th House District, which consists of portions of Dearborn Heights, Livonia, Westland and all of Inkster and Garden City. 

“The person who is going to be responsible for this office next year has to be somebody with passion, somebody with conviction, somebody who can look those people in the eye, tell them everything is going to be okay, and work hard every single day to make sure they have the representation they deserve. It is important to me that whoever comes after me maintains the same values, and same set of commitments…Rashid Baydoun is the man for the job,” said Knezek, who is running for Michigan State Senate in the 5th District. 

Tlaib thanked the crowd for coming out to support Baydoun, and said  he has always stood behind her  and Knezek in addition to a number of other appointed and elected officials at the fundraiser. 

“He will work at every single issue no matter what it is. It will take an army, and this is an army that will help him knock on all the doors in Garden City, and all the places outside of Dearborn Heights, because he has Dearborn Heights. He is a compassionate and genuine person. I can’t wait to have a Rashida in the senate and a Rashid in the house.”  

More than 300 people attended the fundraiser including several community activists and elected officials such as Dearborn Board of Education member Roxanne McDonald, Dearborn Board of Education President Hussein Berry, Wayne County Commissioner Dianne Webb, Dearborn City Council President Susan Dabaja, Dearborn Heights City Councilman Tom Berry, Michigan State University Trustee Brian Mosallam, American Arab Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Fay Beydoun, Dearborn Heights Community Organization President Hassan Bazzi, and HYPE Athletics CEO Ali Sayed. 

Tlaib is running for Michigan State Senate in the 4th District. Baydoun’s brother-in-law Samer Jaafer noted Tlaib is close to being finished with completing three terms in the House, and that having an elected official representing the Arab and Muslim American community in it after she leaves is important. Jaafer discussed the work Baydoun did as a civil rights activist while serving as the executive director of the Arab American Civil Rights League. 

Jaafer says Baydoun played a critical role in helping get criminal charges that were filed against four Arab American students from Star International Academy over a football scuffle dropped. Jaafer said Baydoun was also very outspoken about fighting the state’s emergency manager law. “Rashid is somebody who is highly motivated and very positive. He has been involved in the community since he was able to walk, so it says a lot. He is not just an upcoming person who wants the position for prestige. He wants it because he has been around, and he knows what needs to be done, and he knows how to get it done,” said Zainab Hussein, a member of the DHCO.  Baydoun talked about drastic state cuts that have impacted education, infrastructure and public services over the last few years in the state. He plans on fighting hard in Lansing against the cuts to public education, and he says he will push for more funding in the area. 

“Michigan’s future will be dependent on our education system, and I see amongst us today a lot of educators. They have seen firsthand the effects of bad policies in Lansing,” he said. Baydoun says there are too many college graduates in Michigan that have to leave the state because they can’t find jobs. “We have helped them succeed in their academics, but unfortunately we’ve closed the door to providing them with a career that is worthwhile. That is not right, and we can do a lot better than that,” he said.

Baydoun, a Dearborn Heights resident discussed his father’s tough work ethic, noting he immigrated to the United States from Lebanon in 1978 and worked at Ford Motor Company for 30 years.

Baydoun is a graduate of the University of Michigan-Dearborn, where he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Communications and Psychology with a Minor in History. There, he also served as president of the Arab Student Union, and Students United for Peace and Justice.  He also was a supervisor for recruiting and public relations for the U.S. Census Bureau in 2010. In October 2012, Baydoun was honored with the Great Expectations Award by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He is also a local educator and mentor to students in the Dearborn Public School District.

“I have witnessed firsthand Rashid’s passion to change so much, and I think that passion is going to take him a very long way. He has it in his heart and I know he is going to do it. He has empowered the youth in so many different ways, and one in particular is giving people a voice,” said Mariam Charara, a supporter of Baydoun’s campaign.