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06:30 PM » Meet Ross Mirkarimi

Meet Ross Mirkarimi (www.rossforsupervisor.org), the first Iranian American to run for an elected office in the City and County of San Francisco.

When: Thursday August 5th, 6:30 - 8:30 PM
Where: L’Entrecote restaurant, located at 2032 Union Street.
There is no charge for attending this event
For more information please call: 415-810-2008

Ms. Raeeka Shehabi-Yaghmaii , the Iranian-American Mezzo Soprano will open the evening with Iranian and American songs.

The Honorable Art Agnos, former Mayor of San Francisco, will speaker at this event.

Ross was recently named as one of 15 “National Rising Stars” by the nation’s leading political campaign trade publication, “Campaigns & Elections Magazine”.
Ross Mirkarimi is a very talented and skilled politician who this past year, ran the highly successful Matt Gonzalez for Mayor Campaign that attracted national attention. He has done important work for various issues over the past 15 years, including police reform initiative, campaign finance reform, public power, the Sunshine Law and many others.
He is known in political circles as “…. a tireless fighter for the underdog and as someone who can turn a long-shot into a contender”.
He has an excellent chance to win this race and is already considered one of the front-runners.
The theme for the event is “Unity”. We are hoping, with your participation, to bring together as many Iranian Americans in Bay Area as we can to form a non-partisan coalition in support of Ross’ candidacy for the San Francisco’s District 5 supervisor (a seat Matt Gonzalez is vacating this November).
We strongly believe that ensuring the successful election of an Iranian American in San Francisco; will be the second milestone towards solidifying our political and economic base in San Francisco and Bay Area.
The first milestone was when we all came together in 1998 and worked hard towards successfully establishing Iranian Americans as Minority Business Enterprise in City and County of San Francisco.
We also hope this process will be an education and inspiration to the younger generations of our community in order for them to become effective participants of a Civil Society.
This is a long-awaited opportunity for our community. We cannot not afford to miss it.
Hope to see you Thursday August 5th, 6:30-8:30 PM, L’Entrecote restaurant, located at 2032 Union Street.
There is no charge for attending the event and for more information you can call: 415-810-2008.
The Honorable Art Agnos, former Mayor of San Francisco, is an invited speaker to the event.
Ms. Raeeka Shehabi-Yaghmaii , the Iranian-American Mezzo Soprano will open the evening with Iranian and American songs.
Please help us build this coalition by bringing anyone who is interested.
With Best Wishes for a Strong Community,
Iranian American Friends of Ross
Below is a letter from Ross to the Iranian American Community. For a more detailed profile of Ross please visit http://www.rossforsupervisor.org

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Dear Friends:

My name is Ross Mirkarimi and I am running for District 5 supervisor. I am the 27th out of 32 candidates who have filed their intent. But based on the media buzz, I am already poised as one of the front runners.

I've never been a candidate before, though, I have been urged to run for elected office many times. With Matt Gonzalez's exit from office, opportunity knocks too strongly to ignore. With the same passion and precision that I've put into directing winning progressive campaigns, comes another new challenge -- I want to be the next supervisor.

Much rides on my campaign. While local races are ostensibly non-partisan, Matt's departure provokes a high profile showdown to determine who will succeed him. On the heels of a very exciting 2003 mayor's race, a campaign that I was intensely involved in, I guarantee you that various special interests will do everything they can to subvert my victory. I shall prepare accordingly.

My campaign is not about ideology. Rather, it's about advancing sensible policies and forging new coalitions -- a feature that inspires me to embrace what my father had longed to see -- My Iranian heritage. I was raised to refer to myself as "Persian," but the influence of what it meant to be Persian had only intermittently touched my life. The desire to connect with the Iranian community only grew as time passed; And never did far away ever charge so close for me until key experiences highlighted the meaning of being Iranian and American -- experiences such as: the 1979 Hostage Crisis, chronicling the civilian impacts of the 1991 war in the Persian Gulf, working for the criminal justice system, and September 11, 2001.

If there is to be a modest legacy of my campaign then let its trajectory help stimulate fellow Iranians who fail to exercise their privilege to vote or who fear the possibilities of wielding political leverage -- the ultimate guarantee of a free society. And when one considers the disproportionate statistics of how many Iranians live in California, allowed to vote in California, and the dormant potential to advance Iranians within our political landscape, no matter their party affiliation, I am driven to make our campaign grow in its purpose.

I can win this race and to do so I plan to break from the candidate pack with the power of my independence and policymaking ideas.

San Francisco's murder rate surpassed that of Oakland and District 5 is where the murder upsurge has boomed. There's a lot of talk in City Hall about stemming the tide of violence and I want to add to the discourse by offering concrete solutions. My position to do so among the candidates is unique--a blend of experience and accomplishments as an activist, policy analyst and law enforcer.

And with crime high and our economy distressed, the first casualties claimed are typically small businesses. Dotted all along Haight Street, Hayes Valley and the Fillmore, mom & pop businesses are closing at alarming rates, especially minority owned. Those that stay alive do so because they mostly service a tourist economy--visitors who want to shop in boutiques and gift shops. Through a number of proven measures, I, as supervisor, will sculpt a new small-business plan that makes community-based economics a reality. And this is just the start of a wider policy blueprint.

I'm having fun writing this note. It's almost cathartic because I am brimming with plans to make a vision happen. Fortunately, our local democracy puts a cap in how much one can contribute (Oops, I also directed the winning spending limits campaign in 1995 too).

Before my web site is up and the remit envelopes go to the printer, I thought an email greeting and fundraising pitch could be a good start. Please make a contribution to my campaign. You can give up to $500 per individual and/or business. For contributions over $99, please make sure you include your employer and job title on the check. You may send the checks to: Ross Mirkarimi, 721 Webster Street, San Francisco, CA 94117 (checks: "Ross Mirkarimi for Supervisor").

With warmest regards,
Ross Mirkarimi