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Two university boards. One historic moment for Michigan.

Amir Makled is running for the University of Michigan Board of Regents. Shereef Akeel is running for the Wayne State University Board of Governors. Together, they represent something Michigan has never seen — and the Arab and Muslim community can't afford to sleep on it.

These aren't symbolic campaigns. The U of M Board of Regents and the WSU Board of Governors control billions of dollars, set university policy, shape hiring decisions, and determine the future of hundreds of thousands of students across Michigan. And for too long, the people sitting in those seats haven't looked anything like the community that built this state.

That changes now.

In this episode of the MotivateMe313 Podcast, Amir Makled and Shereef Akeel come inside the boardroom and hold nothing back — their origin stories, the moment they decided to run, the pressure to downplay their Muslim identity on the campaign trail, the campus tensions around Muslim students and free speech that a board member can actually address, and the real talk about what these seats can and cannot change.

This is the episode every Arab, Muslim, and Michigan voter needs to hear before Election Day.

IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Why most Michigan voters don't even know these board races exist — and why that has to change
  • The representation gap: what the absence of Arab and Muslim voices has COST U of M and Wayne State
  • Navigating Muslim identity, Palestine solidarity activism, and campus free speech from the candidate's seat
  • What a board member can ACTUALLY do about tuition, student debt, and DEI — and where the limitations are
  • The solidarity between two campaigns running at the same time with one shared mission
  • What the political process revealed about power in Michigan they didn't expect
  • A direct message to every young Arab and Muslim kid in Dearborn, Hamtramck, and Detroit who thinks the boardroom wasn't built for them

Subscribe to OZ Media for more real talk on politics, community, and the stories Michigan needs to hear.

Like this video if you believe Arab and Muslim voices belong in every boardroom. Drop a comment — who are you voting for and why? More at Ozmedia313.com

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This show was sponsored by:

-The Family Doc https://thefamilydocmi.com/

-Juice Box Juiceboxblend.com

-Holy Bowly http://www.myholybowly.com

-Wingfellas thewingfellas.com

-Hanley International Academy https://www.hanleyacademy.com

-Malek Al-Kabob malekalkabob.com

-Bayt Al Mocha https://baytalmocha.com/

-Chill Box https://www.chillboxstore.com/

-Royal Kabob https://www.royalkabob.com/

-GEE Preparatory Academy https://www.gee-edu.com/schools/geepreparatory/index

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