Haruun J. Ali (born April 17, 2003) is an Canadian politician, community organizer and activist from Edmonton, Alberta. He is currently running in the 2021 Edmonton municipal election for Ward papastew.[1] He is the youngest candidate running in this election and seeks to become Edmonton’s youngest, first Black-Canadian, and first Muslim city councillor.[2]
Early life and education
editAli was born in Windsor, Ontario and was raised in Edmonton. His father Jibril Ibrahim is a community leader, advocate and current President of the Somali Canadian Cultural Society of Edmonton.
Ali graduated from Lillian Osborne High School a year early and attended the University of Victoria before transferring to the University of Alberta where he is currently a student.
Career
editAli has advocated against the United Conservative Party and Premier Jason Kenney’s plan to create a youth minimum wage that would be lower than the provincial minimum wage.[3] Ali was also involved in the aftermath of the racially motivated assault that occurred at Rosslyn School.[4] He advocated for stronger protection for black students and he also advocated for Edmonton Public School Board and Edmonton Police Service to come with an action plan on how they plan to prevent this. Ali alongside numerous community leaders advocated for federal hate crime laws to be reviewed to ensure that they were effective. Ali also called for an internal EPS review on how this matter was handled.[5] Ali has also advocated for Edmonton’s Police Chief to take steps to do a better job of working with the Muslim and Black community as he believes that this relationship has been damaged by a lack of communication. [6]
2021 City Council campaign
editOn January 1st 2021, Ali announced his 2021 campaign to succeed four term councillor Ben Henderson in the newly created Ward papastew of the Edmonton City Council. Ali decided to run because he believes that getting more youth involved in politics is important as a large part of Ward papastew is encompassed by the University of Alberta. Ali has also cited the Edmonton Police Service as another reason for his candidacy as he aims to deliver reform to the Edmonton Police Service[7]
Ali is seen as one of the most progressive candidate in a field that also includes Ward F Trustee Michael Janz, 2017 Ward 8 runner up Kirsten Goa, and other candidates. His campaign has also gained a lot of media attention due to his age and the unique way that Ali has been running his campaign.
Personal life
editAli is a practicing Muslim.
Reference List
edit- ^ Dyer, Steven (2021-02-02). "'Young people can make a difference': 17-year-old running for city council". Edmonton. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ "Haruun Ali For Ward papastew". Haruun for papastew. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ "Lower minimum wage for Alberta youth takes effect Wednesday | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ "https://twitter.com/epsbnews/status/1385671357090856963". Twitter. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
{{cite web}}: External link in|title= - ^ Lachacz, Adam (2021-05-01). "Protesters call for police accountability and changes to hate crime laws". Edmonton. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ "Edmonton's Black community blames repeated EPS blunders over past year for 'broken relationship' - CityNews Toronto". toronto.citynews.ca. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ Dyer, Steven (2021-02-02). "'Young people can make a difference': 17-year-old running for city council". Edmonton. Retrieved 2021-08-11.