Are you there President Obama? It's me, Maryan.

In 2004, I was a very ambitious 3rd grader getting ready to turn 10. I was very overwhelmed by the idea of becoming a decade old. My mother was pregnant with her seventh child and would spend a lot of time at home reading. 

During this time, my mother would always recommend books to me. One time my mother brought me a book with three pictures of a man, and what appeared to be his family with the title "Dreams from my Father". I am guilty of judging books by covers, I took one glance at the pale mustard colored cover and decided it wasn't a book that would fit my taste. My mother explained time and time again it was about a man who was half Kenyan and half White American. She said his speech at the Democratic National Convention was so compelling and moving that she sincerely believed that this man would be President of the United States one day.

Now, remember. It is 2004. My mother had predicted that this man would become President a full Bush-term before he even ran. I was a strange 10 year old that was interested in politics largely due to the fact that my mother was a politics junkie herself.

 In 2005 the name Barack Obama was on every Chicagoan's mind. A relatively young and well spoken black man was running for Senator for the state of Illinois and this was exciting for Chicagoans. Gang related crimes and homicide in the inner city was rising, people were losing jobs and homes and faith in the government and the simple fact that this man called our difficult city his adopted home showed how much he cared.  

It didn't take much for us to claim him. He was like most of us from the City of Broad Shoulders. Our families hailed from different countries and immigrated to America within the 20th century. Many of us from mixed backgrounds like he was. He wasn't born rich with a silver spoon in his mouth. He had to work hard and was raise by a single mother who was determined to educate her son and give him a good life. 

Barack and his wife Michelle were seemingly average Americans that worked their way into the political arena out of sincere caring for their fellow citizens. They wanted what they worked hard for to be possible for every child born in our nation. They wanted the opportunities they had to break barriers for to be easy for younger generation African Americans and non-whites that weren't automatically granted those opportunities. 

Quickly after his win for the senate seat, the momentum was undeniable. Re-runs of his speech at the 2004 Democratic National Committee and his recent campaign speeches would conquer the mainstream media. 

There is not a liberal America and a conservative America—there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America—there's the United States of America.
— Barack Obama, 2004 Democratic National Convention Keynote Address

He was riveting, his words were electrifying. Barack Obama was what this country needed to stop feeling divided. He then decided to run for President of the United States of America, despite the assumed inevitability of Clinton's win. The media repeatedly said he had a lack of experience. He was a rookie senator from Illinois, yet Barack Obama was making amazing almost unbelievable gains in the polls. 

We all know how this story ends. The young inspiring Presidential Candidate I knew as an 8th grader grew tired. His hair turned gray as the immense weight and pressure of the power of the Presidency hung over his head. He plugged the leak in our economy, saved jobs, saved the banks from failing, passed immense healthcare reform that no other President has done or could do since Truman. He sent a team of navy seals out to kill Americas #1 most wanted enemy within 2 years of his first Presidential term. He gave the children of illegal immigrants a chance to thrive in our nation. He released prisoners from being wrongfully detained after serving more than their deserved time. He was the first President to ever visit a jail in our country. The great late Nelson Mandela said "No one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails." President Barack Obama became the first President to truly know our nation in the year 2015. 

President Barack Obama's legacy will gleam in future years, and as his presidency wraps up later this year I hope Americans remember what sacrifices he has made trying his best to fulfill the promises he made to us. With republicans trying to stop him from making any progress at every turn, the accomplishments he's made are something we should be grateful for. 

Most importantly of all, President Barack Obama gave black kids a non-athlete non-musician role model. A black man is the leader of the free world, and it makes my heart heavy realizing I don't know when I will be able to write those words again knowing they are true once he leaves office. 

Whatever President Obama decides to do with his time after presidency, I hope him and his family the best most fulfilling lives. I hope to watch this family continue on to further greatness as they are forever engrained and in the fabric of our nation's history. 

Bernie Sanders: America's Favorite Socialist

When our Founding Fathers drunkenly gathered in Philadelphia to establish the great democracy that is the modern day American political structure, I highly doubt they imagined our "democracy" would become a fundraising battle between the brother and son of two former Presidents on one side and the wife of a former President on the other.

I would like to think our Founding Fathers instead imagined a country in which the son of a Kenyan and the daughter of a WWII veteran have a son that grows up to be the President of the United States. But come 2016 that dream of hope and change will set, and a new polished turd promise of hope and change just like the old one will rise to disappoint us yet again.

But on one late April day, a self proclaimed socialist from Brooklyn announced his run for President. Bernie Sander's career launched in 1971 when he joined the Anti-Vietnam War Liberty Union Party in Vermont. After a series of unsuccessful runs for Senate and Governor of Vermont, Sanders finally was victorious in 1981 when he ran for Mayor of Burlington, Vermont. He defeated six-time Democratic incumbent Gordon Paquette by 10 votes. He won another three consecutive terms as Mayor, and in his last election in 1987 he defeated a candidate with the political backing of both parties.

Bernie Sanders identifies himself as a Democratic Socialist, and gained popularity in Vermont because of his strong policies supporting the poor and working class. Since he announced his bid for the Presidential nomination, much of the mainstream media has caricatured this long-time Washington veteran as an anarchic Marxist communist ready to dismantle the entire capitalist institution.

A thorough look into Bernie Sander's political platform reveals that his ideas are pretty mainstream. He has had a long record of fighting to close the income inequality gap, he has pushed for taxes on the top 1% of the wealthiest in the country. Sanders even introduced the Democracy is For People amendment to overturn the Supreme Court's Citizen United decision. The same decision that ultimately ruled that corporations had the first amendment right to spend unlimited amounts of money in order to influence elections. In fact, a recent New York Times poll shows that 80% of Republicans believe that money has too much influence in politics, illustrating clearly that Sander' political platform is not only the voice of the majority of liberals but of conservatives as well.

Thankfully, the now Senator from Vermont has had a bit of a momentum lately. He has in just the last week alone appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers as well as The Rachel Maddow Show and has had quite a few interviews on CNN and other MSNBC shows.

Katie Couric asked Sanders "Do you think that a lot of Republicans, though, you know, when it comes to compromising in general, they look at you and say 'Bernie Sanders? No way Jose, he is just too far left for us to even-" "They are saying that?" interjected Senator Sanders "Yeah." "These people who want to cut social security, cut medicare, cut medicaid, and give tax breaks to billionaires at a time we have more income and wealth inequality? Who reject science? Who like a campaign finance system that allows billionaires to buy elections? They are telling the American people that I am too extreme? Sorry, don't buy it." Clearly the Senator from Vermont has come to this campaign guns fully loaded.

Bernie Sanders recently came forward with a few proposals to change the debate structure so that Democratic and Republican Candidates can debate before either party chooses its Presidential Nominee. When asked by Rachel Maddow what was the reasoning behind this, he said it was because the "Republicans get away with murder."

He continued to explain that such a debate before the primary season would reveal the emotional politics behind the Republican party, which would expose the Republican party for what they really are; fear inducing war mongering science rejecting capitalists.

Bernie Sanders seems to be the only legitimate Democratic candidate running right now. Hillary's centrist policies that cater to big banks and do little to nothing for working class and poor Americans can no longer be tolerated. In fact, during her 2002-2008 run as a New York Senator, Hillary Clinton's female staff members were paid approximately $15,708.38 less than her male staff members. The same candidate that claims that she is going to fight to close the gender pay inequality gap did not bother to remember her cause while she was an employer.

We do have to keep in mind that the election is 18 months away, and there is no reason anyone should be coronating Clinton as the Democratic Nominee. Bernie Sanders reflects the voices of Americans across party lines. He is a candidate that does not take donations from the big banks that he wishes to regulate heavily. Majority of his campaign donations come from labor unions and small donations by everyday Americans.

If there is any candidate that most accurately and directly addresses the issues that are plaguing our nation, and has actual solutions to these issues. Such as climate change, gerrymandering, gentrification, income inequality, government interference with civilian privacy, gender pay inequality. If there is any candidate that is prepared to propel America into the future by investing in our crumbling infrastructure and taxing Wall Street speculations in order for the government to insure that public and state colleges are free for its citizens in order to increase their quality of life. If there is any candidate that is willing to ditch dark money in our democracy and will crush the oligarchy that our democracy has become. If there is any candidate that wants to stop big banks from playing with the economy and subsidizing them so they are no longer "Too big to fail". That candidate is Bernie Sanders.

You can learn more about policies and his political record and even donate to Presidential Candidate Bernie Sander's campaign or sign up to volunteer at https://berniesanders.com/

Social Justice Warrior

As of late, the phrase "social justice warrior" has been given a negative connotation. Since when did speaking out for one's core values morals and beliefs for the greater good of all of humanity been a negative thing? "Won't you ever get tired of focusing on all of the bad stuff in the world?" While it is mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting: In fact, my blood is pounding as I write this post. It's spiritually fulfilling.

I am going to preach about social justice and human rights until the day I die. There is no "getting tired of it". I am a black Muslim woman if there's anything I can recognize immediately it is micro-aggression and hatred. Demeaning, belittling, trivializing, and even purposeful ignorance of my existence is exactly what drives me to speak out. 

There are billions of women globally that don't have voices. Little girls being forced to marry men 2-3x their age. African women facing Female Genital Mutilation in patriarchal societies. Rape being INDEMIC and RAMPANT in this "great" nation of ours to the point where women going to college have to prepare themselves for possible sexual assault because our society doesn't teach men that rape is a crime against humanity. 

In India and parts of Asia "honor-killings" are a regular practice because the families believe that their daughters have brought great shame to their families. This societal shame is viewed as so great that the young woman has to pay her family with her life in order for honor to be restored. What crimes did these women commit to have to lose their lives? Refusal of arranged marriages, being the victims of rape, and going against the wishes of their families in order to pursue careers are only a few causes.

This is only a fraction of the injustices happening to women worldwide. It varies from race to region of the world but one thing is constant: a hatred for women. Jokes about the injustices women face or the stereotypes we have to fight that are viewed as harmless are detrimental to society. 

We are normalizing hating women. We are, whether we know it or not, reinforcing women into a subservient position in society. Hillary Clinton, a woman who I am not a fan of, faces questions like "How are you going to be President at your age?" when there are Republican and Democratic candidates at her age or even older that are never subjected to such questioning. 

This has been a long ranting post, but I'm tired of being told there's no point in fighting for the rights of all of humanity. Being told to just give up. Why? Giving up means none of these injustices and crimes will stop. That's not a world I want to live in. That's not a world I want for future generations. 

Maybe I am idealistic. I believe in humanity. I believe if we face the facts for what they are and try our best to sincerely solve them with justice for all in mind, we can turn this one way train to the Apocalypse around! The least we can do is learn about what is going on in the world around us and even in our own backyards. 

Social media is a platform we have to take advantage of. There is the potential of millions of people learning the truth about crimes against humanity happening globally. We owe using this privilege to all the women and men across our planet that are suffering in silence. Please don't belittle it. 

Tales of a College Sophmore Nothing

Hello internet comrades,

There are only two reasons why you would be reading this blog. One is that over the  months of your following me on twitter you've finally gained a curiosity for my opinions on subjects that last longer than a string of 2-3, 140 character tweets, or...Two; you wish to take a more intimate look into the desolate lonely not-so mysterious life that I lead. Whatever your motivations to read my neurotic ramblings, welcome. Welcome, welcome, welcome. For lack of a better topic I start my first blog entry with a little introduction of myself. 

My name is Maryam, I'm 20 years old. I was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, making me a proud midwestern American. I love Chicago with all of my heart, but I now live in Burnsville, Minnesota. There is not a city in the world that is like Chicago. We have always been outcast as the country's violent and barbaric inhabitants, from Al Capone's mafia strong-hold of the city to Chief Keef's colorful descriptions of rampant gang violence and drug distribution. Although, that's not the only thing my hometown is known for. Great food like our world famous deep dish pizza, or great sports by the likes of Michael Jordan, Patrick Kane, and Sammy Sosa are only a few of the great things proudly emboldened on pages of Chicago's history. 

Oh, Chicago. The light of life in the Midwest. My mother and father would take me and my siblings to the Shedd Aquarium and his Airness' statue outside of the United Center. From Cub's games to Lou Malnati's for family dinners...it was like my parents were breeding us to become die hard Chicagoans. Twice my family moved from the city. Once, when I was 5 to Owatonna, MN. Two years later we rushed back. And again, in 2013 to Burnsville, MN. Almost 2 years later and there's no sign I'm moving back anytime soon. 

Besides the soft spot in my heart for Chicago, there's one for Minnesota too. Home to the second-largest population of Somali's outside of Somalia, I have never felt closer to my native culture or people before in my life. Our move to Minnesota drove me back to my deen and my culture. Not only did I grow as a person, learning from past mistakes and tragedies, but also as a Muslim. Alhamdullilah. But those are stories for another post...

I enjoy reading books by Earnest Hemingway, Sylvia Plath, and Shakespeare. I'm currently reading Uncle Tom's Cabin. I love TV shows like Seinfeld, Arrested Development, and The Daily Show. I'm an extreme progressive liberal, though I identify as a socialist. My favorite movies are anything by Quentin Tarantino, Dirty Harry, and anything with Samuel L Jackson in it. Comedy is my first true love and passion, second is politics. I don't have many hobbies, because I'd rather lie in bed watching videos about Nietszche than experience the outside world. 

Since majority of my time is spent online reading articles, tweets, or making fun of Hilary Clinton on Facebook, I wondered Why not make a blog? All I do is rant on the internet in increments of 140 character's anyways. And who knows? Maybe this is my ticket to a book deal. I hope you enjoy my future rantings and opinions, or I hope you email me hate that shows that you're engaged with my writing. Whatever your reactions may be, I look forward to them. 

Peace be with you.

Maryam