Arshad grew up in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and attended Red River High School.
[10] Arshad organized statewide environmental issue campaigns on behalf of Clear the Air in Arizona, Bluewater Network in Washington, and Oceana in Florida.
From April to August 2004, Arshad worked as an assistant canvass director for the Fund for Public Interest Research in Rochester, New York.
[19] In late 2010, DFA and Arshad received a large amount of press when the controversy over the Park51 Islamic Community Center in downtown Manhattan started.
[22] In November 2013, Arshad was named the executive director of ProgressNow, a national network of state-based progressive advocacy groups.
In 2014, Hasan praised then-Vice President Joe Biden for endorsing same-sex marriage in the United States.