Mansimran Singh Kahlon, a Democrat, who is running for the Virginia House of Delegates from the 13th District which encompasses largely Gainesville and Manassas Park in Prince William County has come to the seventh annual ikPunjabi Mela at the sprawling Bull Run Regional Park on a warm and windy afternoon in the Washington area.
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“Currently, there is no Sikh in any state elected office or state legislature in the entire country”, he said. Primary elections for the Virginia House of Delegates are scheduled for June 13 and statewide elections will be held on November 7.
Kahlon is a resident of Gainesville and has always lived in Northern Virginia since he came to the US from India as a child, three years old, in 1996. He attended the Rutgers University after Centreville High School and is now a local business owner who runs a trucking company. If elected, he will be one of very few state representatives born in India.
“I’m really passionate about serving our community and the general community”, he said, adding they are not being served by the current General Assembly. The top 10 priorities of residents are not compatible with the top 100 legislation drawn every year by the majority of Republicans in the 100-seat Virginia House of Delegates, he lamented.
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When queried about the upswing in racial attacks,“If people are going after others right now, what makes us think that we are not being targeted”, he replied. “Sikhs have been targeted post 9/11. It’s time we stand up for not only ourselves, but others. Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, all have to realize that we are all stronger together, not divided. There are many forces out there trying to divide us. Together, we can accomplish legislation that is aimed at making our lives easier, and that of our neighbors”, he said.
“I never put the interests of my community above or below others – we are all the same”, he emphasized. “We all have the same vision where our kids can walk the cul-de-sac without the fear of the pigment of their skin”.
By Premji
