By Ramy Osman
August 2016
Steven Zilberg is the first Muslim candidate for senate in the state of Minnesota (14th District). He’s a native of Minnesota who converted to Islam while studying abroad in South Africa. He hopes to become the first Muslim Minnesotan senator as well as the youngest elected person from the city of St Coud.
Zilberg is a graduate student in the Social Responsibility program at St.Cloud State University, and hopes to use his varied experiences and background to run a unique and principled campaign. He has made campaign promises about focusing on issues such as police brutality, improving education (public and private), and lowering the incarceration rate in Minnesota.
Steven interviewed with Mohammad Najafian on KVSC St. Cloud State University Somali Radio. He discussed his campaign, his conversion, libertarianism, and a number of other topics.
“I want officers who kill citizens to be held accountable, just like you and I would be. Not one office has been charged in 143 deaths since 2000. I want drug prohibition ended, so that profiling, harassment, and over incarceration of minorities’ ends. This makes everyone safer by also eliminating drug gangs. I believe in educational choices and options, giving you better access and lower costs, getting state regulation out of your way.”
Here’s a quote from his campaign website:
Steven Zilberg lost both of his parents at a very young age due to a drug overdose. He grew up in foster homes and later was adopted. He is currently pursing a masters degree in Social Responsibility. While going to school at Saint Cloud State University, Steven fell in love with the St Cloud community, and despite traveling to 10+ countries teaching English, he feels most at home and most passionate about Saint Cloud, MN. Steven is motivated by his parents untimely death, and the injustices he has witnessed.
He wants to reform the oligarchy that is the American political status quo. He wants to minimize government and give the regular working class their liberties back. He wants a balanced MN budget and better economic opportunities for Saint Cloud and Waite Park. He wants to change laws regarding police activity to stop police racism and police brutality. He wants to reform education and give all parents freedom of choice as where to enroll their children.
“What right could be more basic, more inherent in human nature, than the right to choose what substances to put in one’s own body? Whether we’re talking about alcohol, tobacco, herbal cures, saturated fat, or marijuana, this is a decision that should be made by the individual, not the government.”
Steven promotes a free market and fighting chronie crapitalists. By lowering income tax and regular working people, we can help the MN economy. We have to defend the 2nd amendment. America’s millions of gun owners are people too. Law-abiding, responsible citizens do not and should not need to ask anyone’s permission or approval to engage in a peaceful activity. We have to make a change in MN, and change starts with the people of MN.