‘He will bring the nation together’: Gold star father Khizr Khan returns to DNC stage to nominate Joe Biden after impassioned speech against Trump

Mr Khan's son, US Army Captain Humayun SM Khan, was killed in 2004 while serving in Iraq during an IED attack

Danielle Zoellner
New York
Wednesday 19 August 2020 14:59 BST
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Joe Biden officially nominated as Democratic presidential candidate at DNC

Gold star father Khizr Khan, who clashed with Donald Trump in 2016, returned to the Democratic National Convention (DNC) stage to nominate Joe Biden for president on behalf of Virginia.

The Charlottesville resident appeared as Virginia's representative for the delegation.

"Three years ago, my beloved city, Charlottesville, Virginia, was attacked by white supremacists and a young woman was killed," Mr Khan said at the start of his delegation speech on Tuesday evening.

"We were attacked again when Donald Trump praised those racists, turning his back on a community that just wanted peace," he added. "That was the day Joe Biden decided to join this battle for the soul of America. Over time, my wife, Ghazala, and I have come to know his soul. He's a decent, compassionate man. He will bring this nation together."

Voters will remember that Mr Khan first stepped into the political limelight during the 2016 Democratic Convention with his impassioned speech about his Muslim son, all while slamming the then-Republican presidential candidate Mr Trump.

Mr Khan's son, US Army Captain Humayun SM Khan, was killed in 2004 while serving in Iraq during an IED attack, and the father used his speech to challenge Mr Trump's fitness for office and his attacks on immigrants and Muslim Americans.

"Have you even read the United States Constitution? I will gladly lend you my copy," Mr Khan said in his 2016 speech while holding up the Constitution.

"In my childhood, I have lived under dictatorship," Mr Khan added, who is originally from Pakistan and immigrated to the US at a young age. "I have lived under authoritarians. This is the first thing they do, media is [the] enemy of the people. Free press has no room in their rule of law, in their authoritarian regime, because they expose the corruption."

Mr Khan's speech was powerful at the time and caused waves through the country. Then-Vice President Joe Biden invited Mr Khan and his family to his home because he related to the father's loss. Mr Biden has grieved the deaths of two sons and his first wife.

"He placed his hand on my shoulder and my wife Ghazala's shoulder and said, 'Folks, you're my family,'" Mr Khan said about meeting Mr Biden in his home.

So it comes as no surprise that Mr Khan made a return to the DNC stage to place his endorsement behind the former vice president in his bid to unseat Mr Trump come November.

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