Julia Shearson is executive director of the Cleveland chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization.
A Catholic who converted to Islam, Shearson says she is countering the Islamophobia espoused on the campaign trail with civic engagement and voter registration drives, stating: “This is our civil rights moment, this is our Selma. A lot is at stake. I feel like we’re on the cusp of tremendous danger of losing the shred of rights we have left. When people are talking about banning you from the country, we’re at a whole new level. This is probably the most important election facing the American people maybe in our history.”
America By The Numbers with Maria Hinojosa (ABTN) will examine voters whose power and influence are growing in a 2016 election special titled “The New Deciders.” The one-hour program will air on Tuesday, September 6, 2016 on PBS and local public TV stations (check local listings). For more information, click here.
Image: Portrait of Julia Shearson. Credit: Paul de Lumen.
