Episode 2

A Seat at The Table: Muslims in America, Part 1

Published on: 20th November, 2025

I sat down with Wael Al Zayat, the CEO of Emgage, an organization working to empower Muslim Americans through civic engagement. We talk about what it means to lead a national organization in this moment—one in which Muslim Americans are becoming more politically active, but also more targeted, as we saw during the mayoral race in New York City recently.

Wael walks us through the trends he’s seeing within the community, how attitudes are shifting and what issues are driving people to the polls. We also talked about Emgage’s experiences engaging with the Biden administration and the Trump and Harris campaigns last year, and about anti Muslim hate and whether it is being normalized. I also asked Wael about allyship across communities: what we can all do as people who care about human rights, equality, and international law to affect a political system that seems to work for the privileged few.

Episode notes:

Emgage USA: https://emgageusa.org/

What Zohran Mamdani's Victory Tells Us About America, Wael Al Zayat https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/zohran-mamdani-victory-america

Muslim Americans Share Political Attitudes With Both THe Democrat And Republican Parties: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/07/21/muslim-americans-share-political-attitudes-with-both-the-democratic-and-republican-parties/

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About the Podcast

The View From Here
The View From Here with Jasmine El-Gamal
The View From Here is a brand-new weekly podcast hosted by former Pentagon official and foreign policy analyst Jasmine El-Gamal.

Each Thursday, Jasmine connects the dots between global headlines and the human stories behind them.

From war rooms to conflict zones to refugee camps, she draws on her experiences to examine how policy decisions impact real lives, uncovering the unseen costs of power.

The View from Here is foreign policy, reimagined: from the people shaping it, to those it impacts.

Get in touch with us with your thoughts and questions! You can find us at jasmine@viewfromherepod.com.

Disclaimer: The View from Here aims to showcase a wide range of views and opinions, which do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast or its host.

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Jasmine El-Gamal

Jasmine El-Gamal is a foreign policy analyst and former Pentagon official who cares deeply about building bridges and changing the way we talk and think about policies that affect us all.

In this polarized, tribal environment, we've lost something essential. We've lost our ability to see each other's humanity across political and cultural divides.

As a first-generation Arab-American who's navigated cultures across North America, the Middle East, and Europe, Jasmine knows what it's like to live between worlds. To see how the same event can be understood completely differently depending on where you're standing.

The View from Here is her brand new podcast where she will break down foreign policy, and the news, and their impact on the humans behind the headlines.