Two hundred and fifty years ago, a group of revolutionaries declared a radical truth: that all people are created equal, endowed with unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. In 1776, those words shook the world. In many ways, they still do.

I did not inherit these words by birthright; I chose them. I came to this nation from Bangladesh as a child. When my family first arrived in this nation, we were homeless, relying entirely on the grace of affordable housing programs and the kindness of neighbors to find our footing. For us, America was not just a destination on a map. It was an idea, the foundational belief that where you start in life does not have to dictate where you finish. Like millions before us, we arrived in America with little more than hope and a willingness to work hard and create a life.

America has never lived up to its founding promise perfectly. It still does not. But the true miracle of America, the force that keeps drawing people across oceans and borders, is that our system contains within itself the tools to do better. We have the Constitution. The courts. The ballot box. And, crucially, the floor of a legislature.

I think about that weight every single day when I walk through our community in Falls Church and Fairfax County, and when I stand on the floor of the Virginia Senate. A first-generation immigrant, the son of parents who sacrificed everything to cross the world for a better life, now helping to shape the laws of this historic commonwealth. That is proof of the American experiment working exactly the way it was meant to work.

My lived experience is not a political talking point, it is the exact blueprint I use to fight for my constituents. My family experienced housing insecurity, and that struggle informs my time in Richmond championing affordable housing initiatives, fighting to expand tree canopies to protect our shared environment, and working to build a fair, inclusive economy. Because I believe every family deserves to feel safe, I have sponsored and carried critical gun violence prevention bills and passed landmark legislation banning the sale of assault weapons in Virginia.

Doing good things for the people who trusted me with this office is my way of paying back a debt of gratitude to the nation that welcomed me.

And yet, the potential risk was driven home for me just last week. A sitting member of the United States Congress publicly called for me to be “denaturalized,” stripped of my citizenship, and deported.

Why? Because of my faith. Because I was born in Bangladesh. And because I fought to pass legislation meant to keep assault weapons out of our communities.

The message behind that attack was clear, brazen, and dangerous: people like me do not get to be fully American. According to the ideology of these right wing ideologues, our citizenship is conditional, our loyalty is perpetually on trial, and our faith is a disqualifier.

I have seen the face of this intolerance before, and let me be perfectly clear to my constituents and to those who wish to silence us: I will not be intimidated.

My values do not diminish my American identity, they fortify it. The commitment to compassion, unyielding justice, and an absolute duty of service to one’s neighbors is the engine that drove me to seek public office and serve this district. These principles do not contradict the Constitution I took a solemn oath to uphold, they harmonize with it, and they guide every vote I cast on behalf of our community.

At 250 years old, America stands at a profound crossroads. We can give in to the loud, fearful voices who want to ration Americanism, those who wish to decide which immigrants are deserving, which faiths are acceptable, and which communities are worthy of protection. Or, we can recommit to the radical promise of 1776: that this republic belongs to everyone willing to stand up, show up, and work for it.

Here in Senate District 37, we know what it means to build an inclusive, welcoming community that looks out for one another. That is the America I believe in: a nation where immigrants, like generations before them, can build a life, serve their communities and help share the future. 

Happy 250th Birthday, America. We still have a lot of work to do to perfect this union. And I, for one, am nowhere near done doing it.