BREAKING: Emgage's Debbie Almontaser is First Muslim Woman in History to Offer Prayer at Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service

January 19, 2020

BREAKING: Emgage’s Debbie Almontaser is First Muslim Woman in History to Offer Prayer at Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service
Washington, D.C.- Emgage’s Senior Advisor, Debbie Almontaser, is the first Muslim woman in history to offer a prayer at the presidential inaugural service. This will be broadcast at 10:00 AM EST on Thursday, January 21, 2020. Then-President Joe Biden will join the virtual event hosted by the Washington National Cathedral. The service will be livestreamed at https://bideninaugural.org/watch and https://cathedral.org.

Almontaser is a Yemeni American. Yemen was one of the countries on Trump’s Muslim Ban. President-elect Joe Biden is set to repeal the ban on Wednesday. He first vowed to repeal the ban during Emgage Action’s “Million Muslim Votes” Summit.

“It is an incredible honor to be the first Muslim American woman to offer a prayer at the Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service. I feel that inviting me, not only as a Muslim woman, but as a Yemeni American, is symbolic, and gives me much hope in the Biden-Harris administration. For the past four years, Yemen has been a victim of Trump’s horrific Muslim Ban. Yemeni Americans have been devastated by family separation, and Yemeni refugees have been rejected. With Biden’s upcoming eradication of this ban, I hope that me being given this honor symbolizes an end to Trump-era institutionalized Islamophobia, and a newfound chapter of inclusion and engagement of Muslim American communities.” – Debbie Almontaser, Senior Advisor of Emgage 

Emgage’s pre-inauguration event, “Muslim Americans’ Inauguration Celebration: Looking Ahead to Engagement Priorities With the New Administration,” will happen tonight at 6:30 PM EST. Click Here to Join.  There will also be a press conference at 6:00 PM EST, join here, with the passcode 2021.

Emgage is a 501c(3) with national headquarters in Washington, D.C., and state chapters in Michigan, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and New York, that implements an ecosystem of programs to develop the capacity of the Muslim voter to ensure that our narrative is part of the American fabric. Our programs include civic educational events such as issue forums and town halls, voter initiatives including Get Out The Vote (GOTV), and specific programs for the youth in order to mentor and support the next generation of leaders.