Nasrina Bargzie

Nasrina Bargzie is an Afghan-American lawyer who was the deputy counsel to U.S. vice president Kamala Harris from 2022 to 2024. In the role, she was a policy advisor on Muslim, Arab, and Gaza Strip topics in addition to reproductive rights, voting, and democracy. She joined the Kamala Harris 2024 presidential campaign to lead its outreach to Muslim and Arab communities.

Life

Bargzie was born in Kandahar, Afghanistan.[1] Due to the Soviet–Afghan War, she lived in an active war zone for her first two years of life.[2] Her father and uncle were prisoners of war before disappearing.[2] Her family lived in Pakistan for three years as refugees.[2] In 1985, she moved to the East Bay, California with her family under the United States Refugee Admissions Program.[1][2] Bargzie has six sisters and is fluent in Pashto.[3][2] She earned a J.S. from UC Berkeley School of Law in 2005.[1][3][4] She is a member of the Order of the Coif.[4]

Bargzie clerked for judge William A. Fletcher of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.[5][4] For severals years, she was a lawyer and legal fellow on the national security project of the American Civil Liberties Union.[4][5] Bargzie worked for Boies Schiller Flexner LLP.[4] Bargzie has lectured at Stanford Law School.[5]

Bargzie was a national security and civil rights senior staff attorney for Asian Americans Advancing Justice with the Asian Law Caucus.[2][5][4] In this role, Bargzie authored a 2015 article arguing that the U.S. government's Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) program unfairly labels innocent activities as potential terrorism, disproportionately targeting marginalized communities.[6] She contended that such surveillance practices violate privacy rights and legal standards, and emphasizes the need for accountability and public oversight in how SARs are handled.[6] In a 2015 article published in the UC Law Journal of Race and Economic Justice, Bargzie and Yaman Salahi argued that the U.S. Department of Education should carefully balance protecting students' civil rights while ensuring that First Amendment rights are not infringed upon, particularly in the context of campus speech about Israel and Palestine.[7] They emphasized the need for policies that prevent the chilling effect of federal investigations on free speech and encourages open political dialogue in educational institutions.[7]

In January 2021, Bargzie joined the Office of the Vice President of the United States as the associate counsel to vice president Kamala Harris.[1][3] She was promoted to deputy counsel to the vice president in May 2022.[3] In these roles, she was a policy advisor and the on Muslim, Arab, and Gaza Strip topics.[1] She provided input on reproductive rights, voting, and democracy.[1] She left in July 2024.[1]

In August 2024, Bargzie joined the Kamala Harris 2024 presidential campaign to lead its outreach to Muslim and Arab communities.[1] Upon her appointment, The Jerusalem Post reported that she had a history contentious statements about Israel and Jewish students regarding antisemitism.[8] Specifically, the Center for Constitutional Rights reported that Bargzie said “...the organized legal bullying campaigns have failed,” in response to the U.S. Department of Education dismissing complaints in 2013 against three University of California campuses, which claimed that protests against Israel had created a hostile environment for Jewish students.[3][8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Alcindor, Yamiche (2024-08-13). "Harris' campaign adds top adviser to lead outreach to Muslim and Arab voters". NBC News. Retrieved 2024-08-14.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Whitney, Alyse (2021-07-04). "Vice President Kamala Harris Turns the Spotlight Over to Her AAPI Staffers". Glamour. Retrieved 2024-08-14.
  3. ^ a b c d e Lucente, Adam (August 14, 2024). "Who is Nasrina Bargzie, Kamala Harris' liaison to Arab and Muslim voters?". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Nasrina Bargzie biography". Asian Law Caucus. Archived from the original on 2015-09-21. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  5. ^ a b c d Gaudiano, Nicole; Bravender, Robin (October 10, 2021). "Meet 54 rising Democratic stars working in Vice President Kamala Harris' office". Business Insider. Retrieved 2024-08-14.
  6. ^ a b Bargzie, Nasrina (January 9, 2015). "Suspicious Activity Reports Go to Court". ACLU of Northern CA. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  7. ^ a b Salahi, Yaman; Bargzie, Nasrina (2015-01-01). "Talking Israel and Palestine on Campus: How the U.S. Department of Education can Uphold the Civil Rights Act and the First Amendment". UC Law Journal of Race and Economic Justice. 12 (2): 155. ISSN 1546-4652.
  8. ^ a b "Harris appoints Muslim outreach chief with contentious views on Israel". The Jerusalem Post. 2024-08-15. Retrieved 2024-08-19.