(Image source from: Gulf News)

Kevin Thomas, New York first Indian American Senator, a Dubai-born and who assumed office at the beginning year 2019 is now advocating tolerance and pushing for diversity which he had experienced in the United Arab Emirates.

Thomas, in an interview with Gulf News on Sunday, shared his memories about Dubai where he was born and raised till he was 10 and then returned in 2010 for an internship.

The first and only Indian-American lawmaker in New York state's history said: "We lived somewhere in Satwa... I studied in St Mary's Catholic High School up to fifth grade."

His parents, Thomas Kanamoottil and Rachel Thomas, who hail from Ranni in Kerala, decided to move to the United States for their children's higher education.

On November 6, 2018, Thomas was elected as the Democratic member representing the sixth district, Nassau County.

An attorney and an appointee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights to the New York State Advisory Committee, a federal agency tasked with civil rights oversight, Thomas won against the incumbent Senator Kemp Hannon, who had served in the State Senate since 1989.

In the interview, Thomas cited his experience in Dubai of communities celebrating festivals of different religions and regions as one of the reasons why he sponsored the bill.

Currently serving as the chair of the Committee on Consumer Protection and a member of various committees, Thomas on March 5 introduced a bill that gives holidays for schools on festivals such as Eid-ul-Adha, Eid-ul-Fitr, Diwali, Vaisakhi, and Onam.

"I am pushing for diversity,” he told the Gulf News. Regarding Dubai's development, the Senator said: "The construction, the booming market ... everything has been revolutionary. You say you are going to Dubai, and people are like, yeah that is a great city."

By Sowmya Sangam