Despite long-held beliefs that Italy is not amongst the most welcoming countries when it comes to immigrants, the approaching local elections in Rome are featuring a young woman of Egyptian descent.
Translation: " I'm Mariam Ali, I will do everything to bring your voice higher, to break down stereotypes, and to bring about improvement. Your vote is important, YOU ARE THE POLICY! Administrative elections, Rome, 3/4 October."
Twenty-years old Mariam Ali who is by far the youngest candidate in the 2021 Rome municipal elections is an active user of social media with about 250k followers on TikTok in addition to around 40k followers on Instagram even before announcing her political aspirations last August. Mariam Ali is currently enrolled in law school at the Sapienza University of Rome.
Ali who has announced her decision to run for elections through a social media video has promised her voters to "bring your voice higher, to break down stereotypes and to bring about improvement."
Nella lista Demos la prima candidata col velo alle comunali di Roma. Mariam Ali dichiara: «I pregiudizi sul velo e sulla mia religione? Chi li ha, è chi non sa».
— UAAR (@UAAR_it) August 7, 2021
https://t.co/xc8rU2elDZ
Translation: "The first candidate in Hijab for the municipal council of Rome, Mariam Ali says: "People who are prejudiced against my hijab and religion do not know enough."
However, online people have been weighing in the fact that Ali represents a new generation of Italian immigrants who would not have had chances of running for local elections a few decades ago, especially that she comes from a practicing Muslim background as the daughter of Mosque El Fath's Imam who immigrated from Egypt to Italy several years ago to reside in the Magliana neighborhood of Rome.
Mariam's sister, Tasnim Ali, is also a well-known figure amongst young Italians as she is a famous TikToker with over 500k followers.
