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A grand moment for the Ivy League institution as they elect their first-ever Muslim student body president.
Bayan Galal, 19, sister of Channel 3’s Ayah Galal, is a Molecular, Cellular, Development Biology, and Global Affairs double major on the pre-med track. She’s following the path in pursuing the joining between healthcare access and international development, focusing on the Middle East and Africa.
Bayan is an Egyptian American that is wholly focused on how-to and the delivery of healthcare impacted by social and political infrastructure. Hence, she hopes to connect the worlds of medicine and international relations in order to work towards equitable healthcare access.
In the span of 320 years, Yale has elected a Muslim as the university’s student body president, whose also their first Arab American and Hijabi that’s been elected for the position.
Bayan discussed with her sister, Ayah, the reason why she had made the decision to run.
“I think the role of student body president is one where you’re uniquely situated to advocate for the student body and especially advocate for marginalized communities on campus,” Bayan Galal explained. “So, I felt that especially in the wake of the pandemic, this was an incredibly important time to step up, to run for this role and see what I can do for the Yale student body. What results I could deliver and how I could better the school in my time here.”
Bayan understands the first-hand misunderstanding and misconceptions about Islam and the believers of this faith. She mentions how much the historic moment would mean for the rest of the Muslim students of Yale and the Muslims across the state, the country, and the globe.
“I think it’s a really exciting and pivotal moment for Muslims right now,” Bayan Galal said. “Especially on Yale’s campus. I think without a doubt, Yale is a place that wasn’t originally made for Muslims and other underrepresented and marginalized communities and I think having a student body president that comes from one of those backgrounds is incredibly important because it means that we’re moving in the right direction, we’re moving in a direction where not only do we have Muslim students and other underrepresented minorities on campus but they’re in positions and roles where they can advocate for others and thrive in a really exciting way.”
Bayan Galal explained her vision for Yale, “I think ultimately, the vision is to have individual and collective well-being at Yale,” she said. “I think while Yale is an incredible place, there is a lot of difficulties that students still face here and my vision for Yale is that we address all of the different needs of students at once.”
Inspired by: https://www.wfsb.com/
