Jamilah Nasheed Explained

Jamilah Nasheed
State Senate:Missouri
District:5th
Term Start:January 2013
Term End:January 2021
Preceded:Robin Wright-Jones
Succeeded:Steve Roberts
State House2:Missouri
District2:60th
Term Start2:January 2007
Term End2:January 2013
Party:Democratic
Birth Name:Jenise Williams
Birth Place:St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Spouse:Fahim Nasheed[1]
Occupation:Small business owner (Sankofa Books and Gifts), Real Estate Investor

Jamilah Nasheed (born Jenise Williams; October 17, 1972)[2] is an American politician from the state of Missouri. Nasheed formerly represented the fifth district in the Missouri Senate, and formerly served in the Missouri House of Representatives. She is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Born Jenise Williams, she was raised with her three brothers by their grandmother in a St. Louis housing project. Her father was killed in a drive-by shooting several months before she was born.[3]

She attended Roosevelt High School in St. Louis. She later took classes at Florissant Valley Community College in 2012. As an adolescent, Nasheed began visiting a mosque on Grand Boulevard. After two years of studying Islam, she converted to the religion.[4]

Political career

Nasheed served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 60th district from January 2007 until January 2013. She was the first Muslim woman to serve in a state legislature.[5]

Nasheed ran for the Missouri Senate in the 2012 elections. A St. Louis Circuit Court judge ordered she be removed from the ballot because she did not live in the boundaries of the district at the time of the election, although district boundaries were to change through redistricting.[6] She appealed the decision to the Missouri Supreme Court, which allowed her to remain on the ballot. She defeated incumbent Robin Wright-Jones and fellow State Representative Jeanette Mott Oxford in the Democratic primary,[7] and won the general election. In December, she was chosen to chair the Missouri Black Legislative Caucus.[8] [9]

During the Ferguson unrest, Nasheed was taken into police custody on October 20, 2014, in front of the Ferguson, Missouri police station. News reports indicated she was in possession of a firearm and drunk at the time of her arrest.[10] Another protester said Nasheed refused to get off the street even after police gave instructions to the protesters to do so.[11]

In September 2016, Nasheed sat while her colleagues recited the Pledge of Allegiance in the Missouri Capitol. She said she acted in solidarity with San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in protest of police brutality and racial oppression, although many of her colleagues saw this as unpatriotic.[12]

Nasheed was a declared candidate for Mayor of St. Louis in the 2017 election, but she dropped out of the race in January 2017.[13] [14] She ran in the March 2019 election to be the president of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen.[15]

Personal life

On November 22, 2014, Nasheed was the victim of a carjacking attempt.[16]

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/65451/jamilah-nasheed#.VHT4-0v3iRU Profile
  2. Web site: Profile: Sen. Jamilah Nasheed (D-MO). cqrcengage.com. 2019-01-30.
  3. Web site: Let the Dems keep hating: Jamilah Nasheed could pull off the political coup of the century. August 18, 2011. October 7, 2021. Samaha. Albert. Riverfront Times.
  4. Web site: From the projects to the Capitol, part two. May 14, 2013. October 7, 2021. Jost. Ashley. The Missouri Times.
  5. Web site: Rashida Tlaib, First Muslim Woman to Become a Michigan State Representative . Findingdulcinea.com . February 12, 2014 . February 25, 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090225181316/http://www.findingdulcinea.com/features/profiles/2008-women-firsts/rashida-tlaib.html . dead .
  6. News: Judge orders Jamilah Nasheed removed from state Senate ballot. Jake Wagman. May 16, 2012. St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  7. News: Jamilah Nasheed Wins State Senate Contest. Kevin Killeen. August 7, 2012. CBS St. Louis.
  8. News: Jamilah Nasheed elected Caucus Chairman. November 21, 2012. St. Louis American.
  9. News: Nasheed to head Legislative Black Caucus. Virginia Young. November 8, 2012. St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  10. News: Protester: 'All Hell is Going to Break Loose' if Darren Wilson Isn't Indicted. October 21, 2014. CBS News.
  11. News: State Sen. Nasheed freed from jail, explains her 'symbolic' arrest. Lee Enterprises. October 21, 2014. St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  12. Web site: September 14, 2016, by Kevin S. Held . Missouri senator sits during Pledge of Allegiance in protest . Fox2now.com . September 14, 2016 . January 9, 2019.
  13. Web site: Nasheed files campaign committee to run for STL mayor - The Missouri Times. November 17, 2016. themissouritimes.com.
  14. News: Zimpfer. Travis. Nasheed drops out of St. Louis mayoral election. February 23, 2017. The Missouri Times. January 6, 2017.
  15. Web site: Rivas . Rebecca . Jamilah Nasheed enters the race for Board of Aldermen president | Local News . stlamerican.com . January 25, 2018 . January 9, 2019.
  16. http://fox2now.com/2014/11/22/armed-man-tries-to-carjack-mo-state-senator-nasheed State Senator Nasheed alleges armed man tried to carjack her