Hilmy Bakri and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse have known each other for years, but the senator’s invitation still came as a humbling surprise.

Bakri, a Cranston resident and president of the Board of Trustees of the Islamic School of Rhode Island, attended President Donald Trump’s address of Congress on Feb. 28 as a guest of Sen. Whitehouse. He said he was “honored” to make the trip out to Washington, D.C.

“I think the Democrats wanted to show some diversity, show that there are other people besides the ones Trump is targeting. There are other voices, other faces,” Bakri said during an interview on Friday. “I was glad they did reach out.”

Bakri first interacted with Sen. Whitehouse’s office following the widely publicized vandalism of the Islamic School of Rhode Island in West Warwick in February of 2015. He met the senator shortly after when Whitehouse came to visit the students and sit with the board of directors. He introduced Whitehouse at a community dinner in the weeks following President Trump’s inauguration. He was then asked to accompany Whitehouse to Trump’s speech during a joint session of Congress and admittedly “didn’t know what to expect.”

“I don’t think most people expected him to be that close to script. I think that’s what people are talking about,” Bakri said.

“I was more curious to see about how, as a democracy, we function, hear about how we can make an impact. The speech was a speech. To me, I was more interested in how can we, as citizens [make an] impact.”

The main goal of his visit, Bakri said, was to learn more about how to get the Muslim community more politically and civically engaged. He took time during his trip to talk with Whitehouse about a wide range of topics, from the Affordable Care Act to the appropriation of budgets.

“What I was trying to get out of it is, what can we do?” Bakri said. “I love people asking questions, what can we do? Everybody is trying to join something, to do something. It’s just the question that everybody has. From my perspective, even for my community, is what can we do as Muslims, being a minority, but we’re a large enough minority to start making noise and to make sure we move in the right direction. I want to figure out how we can be a force.”

Sen. Whitehouse released multiple statements addressing why he chose to bring Bakri. Sen. Whitehouse said that President Trump promised to be a “president for all Americans,” but added Bakri was “one of the many Americans to whom he swiftly broke his promise.”

“He never denounced the discriminatory policies and hateful rhetoric directed at immigrants, particularly Muslim immigrants, that have marked his short time in office,” Sen. Whitehouse said in a statement after Trump’s address. “A Rhode Islander and devoted Muslim, who contributes a great deal to our community and cares deeply for his country, was with me tonight as a reminder that we are bigger than this man.”

During Friday’s interview, Bakri reflected on the challenges facing the Muslim community, and the United States as a whole, in the next two years. He capped it there, rather than the 2020 presidential race, because of the impending mid-term elections in 2018.

He recommended that the Democratic National Convention “execute” on its ideas as the party looks to regain the Senate. Bakri also looked at the local level, though, urging Rhode Islanders to see the importance of elections within the state.

“Your town or state elections impact you more than federal,” Bakri said. “Federal government only has so much reach. They give you funds, they can pull strings because of funding, but other than that they can’t do anything. It’s your governor; it’s your state legislature. You want to fix a road? That’s town. Want to fix roads? That’s town, sometimes state.”

As for the Muslim community, Bakri said a lack of understanding and “human connection” has led to legislation like President Trump’s travel ban. He offered a couple of solutions to “counter the narrative” that exists around Islam.

“I think the best thing you can do is to understand and get to know one another,” Bakri, a native of Sweden who has been to almost all of Europe, said. “The thing is, because we don’t know one another, it’s a lot easier for us to hate one another. This is not just [in] America, this is the entire world. I’m focused on how do we build bridges, and first of all how do we become more engaged.”

Bakri suggested that engagement starts with Muslims standing behind one of their core beliefs: justice. He said he was met with myriad grassroots groups for the past few months to help bring Muslims together behind a common cause and learn about coming together to act for it. Living in a state as small as Rhode Island can certainly help.

“This is a good thing where we can have a bigger impact because we are so small. Word travels faster,” Bakri said. “This is not a religious thing or an interfaith thing, this is just basic societal need. For us as Muslims, one of our priorities is making sure there is a justice. We’re going to be behind anybody that stands for justice. Stand behind the immigrants, the minorities, the LGBTQ community, [Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America], all these various organizations that have the right idea and the right philosophy and are seeking justice and equality.”

Monday afternoon saw President Trump sign a new executive order concerning his controversial travel ban. He eliminated Iraq from the list, preventing immigration from six majority-Muslim countries instead of seven. All refugees from Syria, Iran, Yemen, Somalia, Libya and Sudan are temporarily barred from the country as well.

Bakri took issue with the original travel ban on Friday, saying that Muslims were afraid rather than offended by its implementation. Refugee families seeking asylum from Syria have been turned away, while American Muslims have had to reconsider how they coordinate their travels.

Bakri said the fear is derived from the same thought process.

“The reaction has always been fear,” Bakri said. “Regardless of where you’re from, what you believe in, or whatever skin color you have. If you’re a father or mother, the first thing is your children. No. 1. This is the thing happening with the undocumented workers. Mothers are afraid of losing their children. When you have something like the travel ban, and you leave the country, are you going to be able to come and see your children?”

He eventually rated his overall experience in D.C. as a “7 or 8,” but gave Whitehouse as a host a perfect 10. Bakri said he would like to organize a school trip to Washington, D.C., so that the Islamic School’s students can receive a tour of the Senate offices from Whitehouse.

That type of engagement is what Bakri encourages for everyone, no matter their religion or race, in an effort to become more familiar with one another.

“If people want to [meet us at the Islamic School], call us up,” Bakri said. “There have been churches and synagogues that reach out and say, ‘Our congregation wants to come visit.’ That human interaction, I think, is the best way to counter this narrative.”