Omar Bah has thrown his hat into the ring for an open seat being vacated by James R. Langevin (D-RI). Bah, who wrote about Port Of Harlem as a reporter for the Gambian newspaper The Daily Observer is seeking to become the first Black to represent Rhode Island in the US Congress.

Bah’s story on Port Of Harlem appeared in The Gambia circa 2003 and subsequently he wrote a story for Port Of Harlem. He crafted those articles while working at The Daily Observer covering the courts. When he tried to report on a secret trial at a military barrack in 2001, soldiers beat him until he lost consciousness and stuffed him into a closet-sized cell. His reporting in The Gambia led him to become a wanted man by the former administration of then President Yahya Jammeh.

He narrowly escaped the country alive in 2006 at the age of 26. He was forced to leave his new bride, Teddi, behind. “I brought nothing to America except my body,” Bah said. “I got everything from America, so participating in the civic world is a duty. That is why I am running.”

He arrived in the United States in 2007. “My first Thanksgiving was (in Baltimore) with you and your family. I have amazing memories as it was one of the events that molded my memorable integration into American culture. I value and cherish those unique moments you and your family gave me,” Bah told Port Of Harlem.

Teddi was able to join him in 2009. The now father of two became a US citizen in 2012. In 2015, he founded the Refugee Dream Center, a nonprofit post-resettlement refugee organization in Providence. He earned a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from the University of Rhode Island, a master’s degree in public administration from Roger Williams University, a master’s degree in counseling psychology, and a doctorate in leadership psychology from William James College in Boston.

Safe and affordable housing, healthcare, education, homelessness, crime, and climate change are the issues the non-career politician mentioned in his earliest announcement. “I am not a career politician and therefore hope to help minimize the political polarization and promote the interest of the American people, especially Rhode Islanders,” he continued.

“This is the best time to bring in a voice of diversity, a voice of the immigrant community,” he told the Boston Globe. “I would bring an alternative voice, from outside the political world, as an immigrant, a Black male, a Muslim, and a refugee. I think there are a lot of thoughts that the mainstream may not know about. I could make a difference in Congress.”

---

See Also: Photo Exhibit Aims to Help Gambian Reconciliation