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The Detroit Kid Whose School Had No Textbooks Is Running for Congress · Breaking The Meta

• Breaking The Meta: Hello everyone and welcome to Breaking the Meadow. My name is Mike Quinson. Today we are sitting down with Aisha Faruqi, who is running for Michigan's 11th district. Hello, how are you doing today? Aisha Farooqi: I'm doing well, Mike. How are you? Breaking The Meta: I'm doing great. I'm looking forward to sitting down and talking with you. ⁓ ⁓ as I was looking into your race, the 11th district, you have you have a pretty full ⁓ primary. There's five people ⁓ in ⁓ in your district alone for ⁓ Aisha Farooqi: four. Breaking The Meta: Four is it four now? Aisha Farooqi: Democrats, think? Four Democrats? Breaking The Meta: Okay. Maybe that's what it was. I don't know. Aisha Farooqi: And then we've got a Republican candidate and independent candidate as well. Yeah. Breaking The Meta: Gotcha. Okay. So in like when when there is this many people running in in ⁓ in any district, probably one of the hardest things is to try and explain to people how you are different. So like what do you think sets you apart from from all of the people that are running for Michigan's 11th district? Aisha Farooqi: Yeah. So one thing that's really important for me, well, one, I'm the only woman in the race. The second thing is I feel very strongly and passionately about certain issues and I'm not going to change my stances depending on who I'm speaking in front of. If I believe in Medicare for all, I believe in Medicare for all. If I believe abolish ICE and prosecute ICE, I mean abolish ICE and prosecute ICE. If I say I'm not gonna take money from AIPAC, Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: It doesn't matter which gathering I'm in, I'm going to bring that up. No corporate pack, utility pack, I'm going to say it openly. Same with AI data centers, for instance. Not a fan, do not want them anywhere near Michigan. We don't need them. We don't need them. We don't need tech billionaires to make more money, ⁓ surveil our communities. So I think that's one thing that distinguishes me from ⁓ maybe other politicians. I am who I am. And I'm just going to be honest about my stances. I think it's important to do that. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. I I think the other thing that I think I would like to do, especially because ⁓ as I was looking in on you, ⁓ there were some really interesting things about you. So I want to learn more about you and then why you decided to run. But so you are a child of immigrants, correct? Aisha Farooqi: Sure. Yes. Yes. Yes. Breaking The Meta: Yes. ⁓ and obviously in in this country, that is a that is a big that is a big talking point, unfortunately. Nor it shouldn't be, but unfortunately it is. So could you give us a little background on your experience growing up in Michigan in the Detroit area, especially, and what what as an immigrant, as as a child of immigrants, what Aisha Farooqi: Yeah. Yeah. immigrant. You can say immigrant. Yeah, immigrant as well. Breaking The Meta: What does it mean becoming a congressman in this country today, knowing what immigrants around the country are dealing with? Aisha Farooqi: So a little background, my family and I moved to the US in 1993 after my mom earned a scholarship to study at the University of Detroit Mercy, which later I graduated from with, you I studied law there. Had a great childhood, really. I remember when we learned that, my sister and I learned that we were going to be moving to the US and the kind of hope that we felt and the excitement. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: Even as children, we knew what America stood for. It stood for opportunities and it was this great nation and the idea of the American dream meant something. ⁓ That is now dead. And I also realized that the American dream never really existed for certain communities. ⁓ with respect to my childhood, we moved to Detroit. When we first moved to the US, like we flew into New York, stayed at someone's home for two weeks before we moved to Detroit, saw the Statue of Liberty, saw the big yellow taxis, and everything was just huge, right? Like the buildings are so tall and went to the beach and there was a guy with like a python around his neck and it was just something I still remember. But ⁓ moved to Detroit and while my mom studied, Breaking The Meta: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Aisha Farooqi: My dad worked for a small family business serving the automotive supply industry and ⁓ my sister and I attended Detroit Public Schools, had friends who ⁓ had different struggles than we did. ⁓ Attended Detroit Public Schools as I stated, didn't have textbooks during one semester and ⁓ my teacher Mr. White made copies of the lesson plans, paying out of his own pocket. And I remember thinking even as a child. Here we are in the richest country in the world and we don't have textbooks. And after living in Detroit for five years, we moved to Farmington Hills and I graduated from Farmington High School, really got to see the socioeconomic disparities between the two cities and... ⁓ Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: You know, Detroit is my home and it has given me everything that I have. It's given me a great education. I've met some amazing friends who are like family to me. So I've got an immense amount of love for this, for the state and for this, for this great nation. It's given me a great deal. Breaking The Meta: ⁓ you are going around and talking to the people of ⁓ Eleven, what are what are the pain points? What are the things that that the people of your district hope that you can help them with ⁓ their representative? Aisha Farooqi: So I've had conversations with individuals from all walks of life. District 11 is a very diverse area. It's a more college educated district, but you've got, you know, affluent communities and you've got communities where folks aren't making a great deal of money. And honestly, people are worried about affordability is the number one issue for a lot of people. Gas prices being up. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: I hear a lot from folks like, are we involved in this war when we can't invest in it, when we should be investing in our schools, our infrastructure? I think everybody drives over a puddle every day and, you know, ⁓ healthcare is a huge concern for folks. ⁓ I often talk about a friend of mine who casually brought up that she's uninsured. And I was like, you know, we're just talking and she said, well, My husband has cancer and it's more important that he has the $50,000 shots. He needs to live. And so I said, well, what do you do? And she's like, I eat organic. In the richest country in the world, there are people who are uninsured. There are people going bankrupt because they got ill or someone in their family got ill. Right. ⁓ that's a concern and democracy. ⁓ what ICE is doing. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Aisha Farooqi: to our community members, ⁓ the terror, the sheer terror, ⁓ what immigrant communities are struggling with. I know you'd ask like, what would it mean as a person of being an immigrant to become a Congress person? I think what it would mean is having ⁓ a voice in Congress that understands the struggles of immigrants, that understands what it's like to Even, you know, there's this idea that so and so they didn't come here legally. My family and I moved to this country through legal, you know, in a legal fashion, and it was still difficult to get citizenship. And we have to respect the contributions that immigrants have made to our great nation. And We also owe a duty to our neighbors to make sure that their rights are not being violated. We are watching the erosion of due process. As an attorney, I feel very strongly about it. ⁓ So people want to hear you say, abolish ICE. They don't want to see their communities ⁓ being torn, families being torn apart. And ⁓ I think Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: Our voting rights are under attack. the America that we all believed in. It's not that America anymore. These are not the values that we believe in. Right? And so I think it's a very difficult time for a lot of folks. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Yep. That isn't I think that's an understatement, unfortunately. Aisha Farooqi: Yeah, yeah. ⁓ Breaking The Meta: So I think I think another problem that we are experiencing across the board, I think this is a this isn't a left-right issue, this is an everyone issue, is ⁓ a struggle with ⁓ accountability, especially when it comes to our elected representatives. ⁓ that is something that no matter what question I ask anyone I'm interviewing, this one I I this one is the one that means the most to me because I have found that. Aisha Farooqi: Yeah. Yeah. Breaking The Meta: There is a supreme lack of accountability, whether it's in with people in your own party or withholding people from the opposite party accountable. So what what does being held accountable ⁓ mean to what does accountability mean to you? What does being held accountable by the people of District 11 look like to you? Aisha Farooqi: I agree. Yeah. ⁓ I think accountability means that you fight for working families and for your community members and not corporations and special interest groups. It means not taking money from corporate PACs. It means not taking money from a PAC or utility PACs. It means fighting day and night to serve the community that put you in a position to serve them. I think that's really important. I often see politicians ⁓ Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: And I don't like being referred to as a politician. I would rather be referred to as a public servant because that's why I got involved in politics. think it's accountability. Accountability means when someone says, hey, you said you were going to fix, you know, this road and it's still not fixed. What's going on? And you have to sit there and you have to listen and you have to answer those difficult questions. ⁓ Accountability is when there's a child who is sick. ⁓ Breaking The Meta: Mm. Mm-hmm. Aisha Farooqi: that you make sure that they're getting the help that they need. When there are community members who In the very cold winter of Michigan, our sleeping in tents, that you're going out and making sure that they have a roof over their heads. To me, that is what accountability means. It means being beholden to the community you are meant to serve and not to corporate interests and special interests. There are two things that really inspired me and motivated me to run for the seat. One was The affordability crisis, I am an attorney and I've worked as a legal aid attorney. I've worked as a prosecutor in the juvenile division. And I have seen how financial insecurity plays out when it comes to the struggles of our community members. And I believe in Medicare for all. I believe that we need to bring down the cost of living, make sure that we get money out of politics. So we have public servants who are fighting for their communities. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: and not corporations in the billionaire class. And the second thing was watching our nation descend into authoritarianism. My parents have lived under an authoritarian regime. And the other day, my dad said, you know, the things that used to happen in Pakistan, ⁓ where journalists would go missing and individuals would be physically assaulted, simply because they dare to protest. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Aisha Farooqi: ⁓ in a peaceful manner that's happening here. And I think that should alarm anyone. And you know, this is my home. This is our home. And when someone attacks your home, you don't just sit there. You stand up and you fight back. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. you know, you mentioned this idea of ⁓ affordability because is obviously an issue across the nation right now. ⁓ And ⁓ of obviously largest driving factors currently ⁓ is the results ⁓ the currently going on in Iran. ⁓ I'm actually really interested as someone whose family is from Pakistan, who is obviously next door neighbors to Iran and deal has in many ways dealt with very similar problems that the people of Iran are dealing with in many respects. How how do you see not only how do you see what's going on over there from ⁓ from an American like Aisha Farooqi: Yeah. Breaking The Meta: As someone who who hopes to go in and be a representative of this country, how do you see what's going on over there? What what do you how do you hope to take back some of those powers that obviously the ⁓ the United States Congress has given up over the last decade to the president of the United States? Aisha Farooqi: So I believe this war is an illegal war. We have no business fighting Bibi Netanyahu's wars. Simple as that. We do not need to be involved in any war with Iran when our own community members are struggling ⁓ to take care of their basic needs. People are young people. I've had conversations with so many young people who have said to me, my biggest fear is that I'm never going to be able to afford a home. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Mm. Yeah. Aisha Farooqi: I get that. ⁓ I have heard seniors say, this month I have to make the difficult decision of not buying the prescription drugs that I need because I have to pay rent. Or making the difficult decision of not being able to buy the groceries you need, everything you need ⁓ with respect to groceries and Our focus should be making sure that our communities are taken care of here. We also have to make sure that, you know, we are building good relationships with individual, with countries across the world. And under the current administration, our reputation is not the best. And I think that This is why it's so important to have good leaders who understand foreign policy, who ⁓ understand the needs of their own people and put the needs of their own country first and foremost, because I know so many people who voted for Donald Trump because they said, he's going to be a no war president. You know, that's what we need. And look at us now. Look at us now. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Yeah. Aisha Farooqi: ⁓ Breaking The Meta: of ⁓ relations, foreign relations, ⁓ as you said, we have lost a lot of respect with a lot of people that have been ⁓ some of our staunchest allies. We've ⁓ destroyed relations ⁓ with most of the country in some way, most of the world in some way, shape, or form. How do you see the United States Aisha Farooqi: Thank Yeah. ⁓ Yeah. Breaking The Meta: Who has been at the head of the table since World War II, arguably, in pretty much everything going on? How do you see us getting back to a place of respect? Forget being at the head of the table. I think that's that's done with. I think we have now we have destroyed that capability. Countries are now building up their own. Aisha Farooqi: Thank ⁓ Breaking The Meta: their own forces, they're taking back their own protections that we used to as a country used that's what kept us at the head of the table. I think that's gone. Where do you see us going in terms of our foreign relations moving forward, especially after this administration? Aisha Farooqi: Thank Then. My hope for us is that we will have more progressives in power. I think that is the only way we can get our country to where it needs to be. And I think somebody is going to really have to clean up this mess. And we're going to have to focus on the needs of the American people. And we're going to have to help build a stronger middle class. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: We're going to have to fight for working families and the working class. Right now. I really feel that most voters can't distinguish between either party. what the Republicans are doing, what the current administration is doing, obviously it's awful. But ⁓ watching as Democrat, watching your own party capitulating to Republicans ⁓ is disheartening. And I think anyone feels like any voter right now feels like we have ⁓ leaders who fighting ⁓ and who ⁓ standing up for our citizens, our residents. And I think what we're going to have to do is to have good leadership in ⁓ Breaking The Meta: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Aisha Farooqi: In the next upcoming years, hopefully this year, Democrats do really well in midterms. And then in 2028, we have a Democrat, hopefully a progressive in the White House who will help. ⁓ change the world's view of the United States of America because the current administration has done a lot of damage. And I mean, we really need. A leader who's going to. Help. Us come back from this. Breaking The Meta: you know, we hear a lot this idea that that, you know, Republicans, Democrats, they're both two sides of the same coin. Like just kind of like what you were talking about. And and, you know, as someone who ⁓ who sits and interacts, I ⁓ can see I can see problem, ⁓ starkly in some in some cases. ⁓ What Aisha Farooqi: Yeah. Yeah. Breaking The Meta: What would your response though be, you know, as someone who's running as a Democrat and hopes to make progressive change, ⁓ how do you how do you talk to people and and interact with them, knowing that depending on how many progressives get through, depending on what what the con what Congress looks like, how Aisha Farooqi: Yeah. Yeah. Breaking The Meta: Like how d how do you st how do you interact with them about how we move forward knowing that there are some realities that are unavoidable? Aisha Farooqi: Right. Well, first, as you stated, I think there is a lack of trust when it comes to people running for office. And when I have conversations or like I'll post a video and people will be like, well, how can we, how, why should we trust you? Because any politician we have supported in the past has been a sellout. What makes you different? You're just going to, you're saying that you're not going to take money from corporate PACs or special interest groups now. But then when you get in there, when you get in that office, how do we know you're not going to do the same thing? And I think just having conversations with folks and we as Democrats, as a party, we have to win our base over. For years, we have tried to go after this invisible Republican and you know, base that's going to somehow come out and vote for us. We just need to get our own base out. And one thing that I really try to stress to prospective voters is that and community members is that I'm a progressive. Right. Your struggles are my struggles and I am from this community. I'm struggling as you are. I know what it's like when you have to go get gas and you're like, ⁓ my God, this is going to cost me like an arm and a leg. ⁓ I know what it's like when you're like, maybe I'm not gonna buy that expensive sauce this time around. I'm gonna go with this, the store brand. Breaking The Meta: ⁓ your district is ⁓ democratic leaning. know, you're about a D9, D9 district. ⁓ but there obviously are Republicans in ⁓ in ⁓ that district as well. ⁓ Have you as you've going around and interacting with people after everything that has gone on, like Aisha Farooqi: Yes. Yeah. Breaking The Meta: The tariffs, the Iranian war, ⁓ the c ⁓ the ADA subsidies or ACA. I don't know why I said ADA. ACA subsidies. ⁓ have you noticed any change with people that may have been historically conservative to the point where like they are are at least willing to listen in a way that they may not have four or five years ago? Aisha Farooqi: Yeah, thanks. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. Yes. ⁓ There are, I have heard from people like, I didn't expect this to happen. I didn't expect Trump to do this. think a lot of conservatives, have spoken with, they're like, they're outraged by the war with Iran. ⁓ They're just like, they're just like, we didn't think he was going to do this. ⁓ Another thing that Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Aisha Farooqi: I'm happy about is when I go and I have conversations with people, they'll be like, you seem like an honest person will look you up. So that's good. I think at this point, people, people are going to vote for the person who they think is in line to them. And I am not a very good liar. So I just don't lie. Just like, I'm not good at it. But. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Mm. Yeah. Same. Pe people always tell me that I should run. I'm like, I think I'm too honest for most people. I will I will say what it is, even if it's something they don't want to hear. Aisha Farooqi: haha think right now that's what people want though. I think they want people who speak the truth. And ⁓ even if it gets them in trouble and I hope I'm right too. ⁓ Breaking The Meta: I hope you're right. There are some days where I think that they that they want to hear the truth as long as the truth ⁓ as long as what you say is the truth is also what they believe the truth is. And that is that is my biggest worry about this entire ⁓ the entire situation. So I hope you're right. And I hope I hope people come out and vote in that exact with that exact feeling in mind. Aisha Farooqi: what they believe. I will say I've had a lot of Republicans say ⁓ to their friends because we all have conversations with our friends and family members. I had a really good friend of mine, he's a progressive as well. He's like, there's a community that usually they voted for Trump and they are regretting their decision. So there's a lot of regret. ⁓ The war with Iran didn't help. are certain individuals who also voted for Trump because they were not happy with the way the Biden administration handled the genocide in Gaza. And I think now they're realizing is, you know, and of course, like, Breaking The Meta: Mm-hmm. Aisha Farooqi: Trump has just been absolutely horrible on every front. mean, he has not stood up for any community. He seems to only care about himself. And I think that's... Breaking The Meta: That's not true. He totally stood up for the white people of South Africa. Aisha Farooqi: That's true, his best friend, Elon Musk. Breaking The Meta: I hate the fact that I had to say that. Aisha Farooqi: ⁓ I heard somewhere that a lot of the South Africans who moved to the US are going back. I don't know if you heard that. Breaking The Meta: That would not surprise me. I wouldn't want to be here either. Aisha Farooqi: They're like, hmm, yeah. so I thought that was very interesting. I read that somewhere and I was like, no. ⁓ I think, yeah, I think people are regretting the decision they made. I'm hoping that this will be a great year for progressives. ⁓ And I think that we need enough people who love this country and the freedoms that it stands for and the US constitution. ⁓ to stand up and also to speak out against any injustice that's taking place because this is our home and we have to fight for it and we have to defend it. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. ⁓ so I want to do ⁓ a quick little ⁓ future casting. So let's assume your primary comes along and you've won. Congratulations. Then November comes along and you win there too, and then you are sworn in as the congresswoman representing the 11th district of Michigan. What are the first things that you want to do? Aisha Farooqi: Mm-hmm. Thank you. Thank Mm-hmm. I think for me Medicare for all is really important. I want to fight for health care for all. I believe every single American should be covered. ⁓ So that's one thing that I'm going to really fight for. The second thing is we have to bring down the cost of living. I don't want my community members to struggle. ⁓ Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: I support universal childcare. Obviously I care about Medicare for all. We need to get rid of these tariffs. We need to make sure that our community members are doing well. ⁓ We have to strengthen the Department of Education. And ⁓ we need to bring common sense leadership. And we need to also get out of this war with Iran. Like we need more. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: people in Congress who are going to stand up to the president and the current administration. And also whatever I can do to help abolish ICE, that's definitely at the top of the list for me as well. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Yeah. as I mean, I'm sure being, you know, in Michigan and having to deal with what happened in places like Detroit, ⁓ what's going on in New Jersey right now probably is not surprising. ⁓ although I've not many this is the first one that I've heard out about that's gone this far into things like a hunger strike. in order to fight against what's what's going on and ⁓ Aisha Farooqi: Yeah. Yeah. Breaking The Meta: for anyone that has to everything that you've said up until this point What are one or two things that no matter what, you would want them to walk away with knowing about you and your campaign? Aisha Farooqi: This is a grassroots campaign. I am not beholden to any corporate PACs or APAC or any special interest group. My loyalty is to the American people and the U.S. Constitution. And I think we need more progressive leaders who are going to fight for Medicare for all, who are going to fight to lower the cost of living. and who are going to abolish ICE and defend our democracy. Breaking The Meta: As you were talking about the constitution. Normally I'm already done, but it made me think of another question that I needed to make sure I asked because as someone who is an attorney, I've I've talked to a few others, and I think this is something big. Obviously, ⁓ just recently the Supreme Court came through with a decision that pretty much finished the gutting of the Voting Rights Act. ⁓ what do you what what did that mean to you as someone who spent time studying law, but also what Aisha Farooqi: Mm-hmm. Breaking The Meta: Do you hope to do to help fix the problem of ⁓ the loss of representation and the problems of things like gerrymandering that are going on across the country ⁓ if you when you become the representative for your district? Aisha Farooqi: So we got to support the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, fight against the SAVE Act. We also have to do what we can to expand the Supreme Court. I don't believe that the highest court in the United States of America should be beholden to the president or the highest bidder. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Aisha Farooqi: There should be term limits. No one should be in their 90s or 80s serving on the Supreme Court. And we have to make sure that Black and Brown communities and women are able to exercise their right to vote. We cannot go back. That is not who we are. ⁓ And as a nation that Breaking The Meta: Yep. Totally agree. Aisha Farooqi: usually sets the precedence for what happens in the rest of the world, we have to fight for a democracy that works for everyone and that includes everyone. Breaking The Meta: For anyone that wants to learn more about you and support you, whether that's through donations or volunteering, where can they find you? Aisha Farooqi: So they can visit our website. It's Aisha, A-I-S-S-S-A-M-H-A-F-O-R-Congress.com, Aisha for Congress.com. And then they can also visit our Instagram page, which is Aisha, A-I-S-H-A underscore F-O-R underscore Congress. And we would love to hear from them. Breaking The Meta: Absolutely. ⁓ Aisha, thank you so much for ⁓ joining me and sitting down and letting me get to know you and what you hope to do for your district. I really do appreciate it. Aisha Farooqi: Thank you. Thank you for having me, Mike. I appreciate you. Breaking The Meta: Absolutely. ⁓ for everyone else that listened this far, thank you so much. Please hit all those buttons down below. Below, it makes it possible for me to keep doing what I'm doing, which is interviewing amazing people like Aisha who ⁓ want to make real change, want to break the status quo. And ⁓ so ⁓ for those of you that may be new to this podcast, just so you know, breaking the meta is about having hard conversations when necessary, fighting to break the status quo and the idea that all people, no matter your race, religion, gender, or identity. Deserve rights, respect, dignity, and safety. Aisha, again, thank you for being here and everyone else. We'll see you next time on Breaking the Meta. Bye, guys. Aisha Farooqi: Thank Thank you. Bye.