Anika Rahman
A promising politician in
American mainstream politics
Anika Rahman, a golden daughter of Bangladesh, is now not only a Bangladeshi American but also a promising leader in the mainstream American politics. She is a Bangladeshi Muslim American. She was born in Montreal, Canada in 1993 and moved to the U.S at the age of 16. She has started community work age of 13 with YMCA. She has been in Virginia’s political arena for more than 10 years. At the age of 13, Anika got involved in social works as a volunteer through the local Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA). Anika works for the development of adolescents in the Virginia Bangladesh community, including the elimination of inequality, the expansion of education and creating awareness. She also makes efforts to create awareness about the exploitation and neglect of young girls in particular.
Anika Rahman is a progressive woman with experience in local state and national level politics. Because of her professional advocacy, she has developed close ties not only with the Muslim community but also with the Hispanic, African American and Asian communities. She can understand their problems and needs and take initiatives to solve them. Anika’s great quality is that she is fluent in speaking French, English, Hindi and Bengali.
A confident, talented and smart Anika Rahman holds a bachelor degree in Global Affairs with a concentration in International Development from George Mason University. At the end of study, her first work began with the Muslim American Citizen Coalition and the Public Affairs Council, which gave her the opportunity to meet with designated individuals, partners, congressional staff, government officials, and organizations to present Muslim-influenced policy priorities and key issues in the United States.
Anika Rahman became more interested in politics as she understood the importance of civic engagement and had her studies on it. So, she helped the Virginia Democrats and many more to fluff up 15 seats in the House of Delegates, serving as an organizer of CASA in Action, a non-profit organization in the Mid-Atlantic region. She has been involved in public meetings and social justice movements as well as lobbying for bills to be passed in Congress and the Senate. She had the opportunity to work closely with the Burma Task Force on the Rohingya genocide.
She has played a significant role in the mainstream American politics and continues to do so. She has worked for Virginia Majority Leader Dick Saslaw to help Democrats win a majority in the General Assembly in Virginia in 2019. She then served as director of state Senator Janet Howell’s campaign and then she worked as surrogate in her re-election campaign. In light of her experience in campaigning, she had the opportunity to work with local elections and committees. Leadership Center for Excellence awarded her with NOVA’s 40 under 40.
She was recently named ‘Unsung Hero’ by the Democratic Asian-American (DAAV) in Virginia. This dynamic leader of the time Anika Rahman is serving as the second vice-chairman of the board of directors of DAAV. The Bangladesh community is proud of her position.
Anika Rahman was a fellow at Schar School of Policy and Government Fellow (George Mason University) in 2019. She is a graduate from UVA’s Sorenson Institute (Candidate Training Program). She is currently attending Emerge’s 2020 Boot Camp. At present, she was the Legislative Director for Delegate Kaye Kory. She work with Federal Contractor as a Policy Analyst. Currently she is the National Chair of South Asians for America’s Candidate Endorsement and Training. She was the former National Deputy Director for South Asians for Biden. Being connected with various tasks and responsibilities, she was able to understand about policies as well as views of the top policies of the state. It is enviable for many that Anika Rahman is getting the opportunity to perform her duties at all levels. She is in charge of resolving or assisting in the event of a disaster, epidemic or any other problems.
However, she expresses frustration over the lack of accountability of the judiciary and law enforcement agencies in Bangladesh. She is keen to use this position to work directly on law and policy for Virginia. Anika Rahman has already announced her candidature for the local office. This is increasing the interest of the concerned people including Bangladesh community about Anika Rahman.
Anika Rahman is sympathetic and believes in democratic change. As an intelligent and self-confident leader, Anika Rahman believes, she needs to play a role in helping the Muslim community locally and globally. For this, she is working very carefully. She says, “Proper platform and facilities will be ensured for the development of the community.”
Anika Rahman will surely be able to establish herself as a talented politician through her competency, experience and hard works.
