July Volunteer Spotlight: Sundus Kubba

Image description: A headshot of Sundus Kubba, a light-skinned woman with auburn, shoulder length hair. She is smiling, wearing a navy blazer, a white V-neck blouse, and a pendant necklace. She is standing against a grey background.

by Stacey Anderson

This month we’re highlighting Sundus Kubba, a recent volunteer who shares her experience immigrating to America, becoming a citizen, and realizing that it was time to get more involved in preserving the democratic process. Read about her journey below!

Sister District:
Where did you grow up? When did you become politically active?

Sundus:
I was originally born in Iraq and my family immigrated to Canada, and then my husband and I moved to the United States in 2000. We lived in Michigan and then moved to New York City. I became a citizen in 2014, so 2016 was my first election, and after that, I felt that I needed to do more and get more involved. I canvassed for a congressional New Jersey candidate near New York who was flipping a seat from someone who has been there forever, and was a new, fresh face.

In 2019, I read a book called Un-Trumping America by Dan Pfeiffer and he had an action section after each of his chapters on what to do. One of the things that he proposed to stay politically active and to make sure that we have a democratic system for the country is to connect with organizations like Sister District, which was mentioned by name. So I contact Sister District and I talked to Emily [Blank] and I got involved.

Sister District:
Was there anything about Sister District or its approach that particularly resonated with you?

Sundus:

I think what is attractive is that you help candidates who have an outsized impact with a [time] investment that seems not as big.  I felt like local legislative races are ones that can really have outsized impacts.

Sister District:

Has there been a Sister District candidate so far who has particularly appealed, who you really wanted to throw your heart and soul behind?

Sundus:

We worked on three candidates last year and I really liked Jonathan Kassa. I just like his background, though unfortunately he didn't win. I hope he runs next time. He is in public service but never elected office. He just seemed like he's in it for the right reasons, wanting to get more involved in the board, and I felt like people like him should be more involved. He just came across as very competent and worthy of being someone to represent.

Sister District:

You got involved with Sister District during the pandemic. How was being politically active important to you during these strange circumstances of the past year? Was there any Sister District activity you did that you found especially meaningful or gratifying during that time?

Sundus:

Definitely. During the pandemic I had a lot of time and I was anxious ahead of the election, and I wanted to find ways to be involved. So all of that drove me to just try and do more and improve on whatever I was doing. So in addition to Sister District, I was involved with other candidates for president and making calls. It was a lifeline to have something where I felt that I could make a difference and be impactful. With Sister District, when I joined, I asked, “Where do you need the most help?” At the time, it was within communications. Helping within that organization felt satisfying.

Sister District:

Do you have a favorite memory of your time spent with Sister District so far?

Sundus:

I remember when we made cocktails [virtually]; that was really fun. That was one of my earlier events.

Sister District:

Is there a political issue or a cause that you care about most right now, that you intend to work towards in your volunteer hours?

Sundus:

I love the mission of Sister District, where you go to places that you can flip, but I also want to get involved in New York politics. There's always more you can do. And so I've been looking at that, but to see if there are opportunities for me to engage in a local chapter of the party and just, just see what what's out there.

And generally, I want to help make sure democracy holds. Coming from the Middle East, I think one of the big triggers for me in the past four or five years was the fact that we could lose it. We’ve taken it for granted. I came from a place where it was a dictatorship and it's very distressing. Sister District continues to be at the top of my list [in this regard] because it’s at the forefront; the seeds for many voting rights legislations are in these states where we're continuing to battle.

Sister District:

Is there a particular event that Sister District does that you might want to get more involved with in the future?

Sundus:

I’d like to attend more town halls with the candidates. Those are some of my favorite events is because you learn more about them. Following that, probably phone banks.  

Sister District:
Do you have any advice for people who might unsure about how they can be helpful, or how to get more involved?

Sundus:

I say, just ask what the needs are, and you will be surprised at how much you can help by spending a very limited amount of time. You can make big changes. Don't feel like, “What do I have to contribute?” Everyone has something to contribute, whether it's making phone calls, writing postcards, or just becoming more educated. All of these make a difference in one way or another. So don't feel like you need to make a big commitment. You will be surprised how much you can be helpful, and it’ll have a meaningful and positive effect on your life.