Hesham El-Meligly
Hesham El-Meligly is the Libertarian Party nominee for New York City comptroller in the November 2013 citywide elections. He was recently featured in an article on the Staten Island Advance website. The article was written by Maura Grunland and published on August 8, 2013.
An excerpt of the article, entitled “Muslims praying and campaigning in Staten Island’s Midland Beach at end-of-Ramadan celebration”, mentioning the candidate, follows:
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — In an all-American tradition of mixing religion with politics, hundreds of Muslims gathered at Detective Russel Timoshenko Field in Midland Beach on Thursday morning to celebrate the end of Ramadan by praying, while some of their leaders used the opportunity to campaign and get out the vote.
Rami Kawas, a youth director for the Muslim American Society, urged the attendees at the annual Eid al-Fitr celebration to join the New York Muslim Voter and Information Club.
“We need to unite under the banner of Islam and show our presence in the United States,” Kawas said, adding that they should be a “forceful voice in the upcoming mayoral election.”
Hesham El-Meligy, a candidate for city comptroller, was collecting signatures for his candidacy and handing out cards listing his campaign website at the the entrance to the field, where attendees were receiving brochures for the New York Muslim Voter and Information Club in addition to dates to eat for the end of their 1-month fast.
“After Hurricane Sandy, we’re pleased to be on the ocean looking at the harbor and Coney Island,” El-Meligy said. “It’s amazing.”
El-Meligy said the location, named after a slain Staten Island police officer, was especially significant because it where the Muslims staged their Hurricane Sandy relief efforts last November. Muslims went up and down the streets of Midland Beach offering assistance to residents, some of whom had been opposed to an ultimately unsuccessful plan to build a mosque in a former convent at St. Margaret Mary R.C. Church. The relief efforts, El-Meligy said, “led to better relations and understanding” with people who had based their opinions of Muslims on “rumors and hearsay.”
He described this year’s celebration as more festive and organized and overall a “better venue” than last year’s event, which also was held on a field at Midland Beach.
Read the rest of the article here.
Hesham El-Meligly’s website can be found here and his Facebook page can be found here.
A big thanks to Mark Axinn for forwarding the article to IPR.
