Sharjeel Syed
This interview is with Sharjeel Syed, a first-generation undocumented Pakistani Muslim-American, who is currently in his first year of residency in Chicago, Illinois. Sharjeel’s experience of growing up in San Antonio, going to the local mosque, and feeling a close kinship with Islam, has shaped who he is today. He speaks to wanting to impart systemic changes in the healthcare system in America while also being involved in advocacy or social justice work.
Miqdaad Bhuriwala
This interview is with Miqdaad Bhuriwala, a current master's student in urban planning and a member of the Dawoodi Bhora Muslim community. Miqdaad immigrated to America right after 9/11 and speaks to the experience of uprooting his life, losing parts of his cultural heritage, like language, and learning how to fit in as a Pakistani-American. Miqdaad also discusses how living through a global pandemic has allowed him the chance to work on his mental health and focus on his goal of making the world a better place for both humans and our environment.
Seja Haque
This interview is with Seja Haque, a high school senior in Corpus Christi, Texas who speaks about struggling between her Muslim and feminist identities as well as being involved at her local mosque where she was eventually asked to teach. Seja discusses the immigration story of her parents from Pakistan to America and her deep found appreciation of her cultural identity. She plans on attending the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin and eventually becoming a lawyer.
Husaina Yusuf
This interview is with Husaina Yusuf, a young Muslim woman who was born in California and raised in Texas. In this interview, she discusses her upbringing in Houston, the cultural dynamics of her religious sect, and her life experiences. Yusuf was raised as a Bohri Muslim, a subsect of Shia Islam. She shares stories of her family dynamic, her community, and observations of Bohri culture. She also discusses her experiences as a woman navigating gender roles in her religion and personal life.
Faiza Susan
This interview is with Faiza Susan, an Ahmadi Muslim woman and aspiring counselor. Faiza talks about her experiences growing up in an insular minority community and the bigotry she was subjected to at a young age in North Texas. She tells the stories of her mother and grandfather who experienced persecution in Pakistan for being Ahmadi. Having seen and felt traumas common among South Asians, Faiza is working toward her masters in rehabilitation counseling in order to become a counselor for the Desi Muslim community.
Hasan Abbas
This interview is with Hasan Abbas, a Pakistani first-generation American who works in accounting. Hasan talks about his interest in culture, from American pop culture to traditional Pakistani culture, and his continuing efforts to participate in and learn about both. He compares his experiences of different places, having lived in New York and Texas and visited Pakistan many times with his family. Hasan also shares how his religious, cultural, and family backgrounds influenced his life path and his values of empathy and respect for others.
Emmad Mazhari
This interview is with Emmad Mazhari, a software designer and photographer living in Houston, TX. Emmad talks about his childhood in Pakistan and his move and adjustment to the United States. He talks about his relationships to the places he has lived as well as his relationship to his Pakistani Muslim culture. Emmad describes the artistic projects he is planning and working on and shares some of his artistic inspirations.
Hadi Jawad
This interview is with Hadi Jawad, an activist in Dallas, TX. Hadi shares memories of growing up in Pakistan and coming to the US for college. He talks about his business and how he began activism work against US military involvement in Iraq. Hadi describes the impacts of post-9/11 Islamophobia on his community and his own interactions with the FBI.