pic.twitter.com/INPRlvmMur "I would be so proud to win, but also to make history and elect the first Jewish American president this country has ever seen and for his name to be Bernard Sanders." – @lsarsour September 6, 2019

Civil rights activist Linda Sarsour recently spoke at a Bernie Sanders presidential campaign rally, acting as a political surrogate for the Vermont senator. Sarsour expressed her hopes and wishes that the United States will elect Sanders, which would make him the first Jewish president, considering the current rise of "white nationalism and antisemitism" in the country."I would be so proud to win, but also to make history and elect the first Jewish American president this country has ever seen – and for his name to be Bernard Sanders," Sarsour said at the rally.Not only does Sarsour believe electing a Jewish president would be a step in the right direction to disparage racism within the country, she also believes in his values that all Americans deserve healthcare and access to higher education, regardless of their wealth or status.Sanders and Sarsour are pushing for an economy where all Americans can thrive, not just the top 1% of citizens who own the majority of the nation's wealth.In addition, she believes that Sanders will lead the way to a more "transformative foreign policy: one that is centered on peace and diplomacy."A foreign policy that sees Palestinians as human beings deserving of human rights and self-determination," she continued. "Bernie doesn't ask us how much these things will cost, because only people who don't believe we deserve these things will ask us how to pay for things like health care, but never ask us how to pay for endless and unjust wars."Sarsour has been labelled as a controversial political activist in the past for pushing slogans deemed "antisemitic" by the public during the 2018 Women's March, and being involved in organizations and with public figures that have been accused of holding "antisemitic" views – such as Louis Farrakhan, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and the Council on American-Islamic Relations.She previously worked with Omar and Tlaib, both of whom were barred from entering Israel due to their support of BDS earlier in August. Tlaib was later approved for entry after filing a plea to visit her grandmother, but then rejected the approval, citing "oppressive conditions" as the reason for the cancellation.Sarsour has also noticeably not disassociated herself from Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan , who has made antisemitic claims for decades, most recently comparing Jews to termites.In addition, she has previously been outspoken in her disapproval of the Jewish state, often referring to land under Israeli occupation as Palestine. She previously appeared to accuse American Jews of dual loyalty to Israel, claiming that the reason people attack supporters of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement is because they "masquerade as progressives but always choose their allegiance to Israel over their commitment to democracy and free speech."Tamar Beeri contributed to this report.