These days we hear about so much destruction around us, whether it is in faraway occupied Kashmir or our next-door Walmart or church or synagogue. I often wonder what else I can do but pray for a change of heart and for more mercy in people’s hearts? But I believe the other positive action we can take is contribute to the larger good, and acknowledge contributions to society.
In that spirit, I recently was pleasantly surprised to find a book in our mail by our long-time friend, MAQ Siddiqui titled “Seven Dollars in my Pocket”. We got to know MAQ -or Ahmed- as my husband Shahid and I call him through Sajjad and Nuzzo Iqbal. Nuzzo was Norain (MAQ’s daughter)’s kindergarten teacher when they lived in Northern NJ. Pretty soon we were socializing a lot together, including Eid events, musical evenings, and even Poconos vacations. Their children also became friends with our younger set- Sheema and Sonia. In fact, Samena and I were also key connectors in her sister Rani meeting her husband Rezie Jan, and my brother Omar meeting his wife Wajiha! Ahmed and I also became heavily involved in political organizing in our community, and I began to admire his quiet leadership style and dedication as a community leader despite his very important role as distinguished professor and scientist at SUNY Downstate Medical State in cellular biology. Many years later, we attended the multi-cultural weddings of both his children, and were so impressed by their embrace of the different cultures and languages of their new in-law children. At one of his milestone birthdays, his wife Samena and children – Umair and Norain- arranged an amazing party which celebrated all his achievements, with guestbooks, albums, speeches, etc. – it was beautifully done!
In his short book, Ahmed writes about the story of how he came to this country, how life was becoming difficult for Muslims in his native Hyderabad, India, how hard it was for him to leave his father especially; and yet how- much later on- he was able to sponsor most of his siblings to come here and build successful lives. In fact, the photo below shows his large extended family at Umair’s henna celebration which is the night before the wedding. He also shares how his life as a scientist evolved here, and some snippets about his incredible scientific achievements which include several patents. I remember seeing his 50-page CV once and wondering how one person could contribute so much in a lifetime!
I am so happy that he decided to publish his life story, as it sheds light on the contributions of immigrants in our society, at a time when our country is questioning its whole tradition, and actually very foundation, of immigration. It reminds us that all immigrants, whether they go on to become successful scientists or entrepreneurs or ordinary professionals and workers, come with one purpose- to work hard in this land of opportunity which is based on meritocracy, and build a happy life for their family while contributing to the larger society. They make the whole of America greater than the sum of its diverse parts, as we continue to lead the world in science, technology, education. Our intellectual and social diversity is our strength and certainly accelerates innovation. Until now, we have modeled a society of opportunity for all. We immigrants wake up daily with immense gratitude that we had this opportunity to contribute at a higher level, and this sentiment is getting lost in the immigration misinformation campaign these days. Alas, if we could all shift our mindset to one of abundance, not scarcity, then we would not be so easily fearful and resentful which leads to hate and violence.
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