From Berlin to Auschwitz: EYH 2015 Reflections

By in Holocaust

  Introduction For as long as I can remember, I have always been interested in the Holocaust.  In fact, I can hardly remember a time when I wasn’t trying to learn more about it.  Of course, like many young children, I read Anne Frank’s Diary of a Young Girl.  At the time, I don’t think anything I had read before that resonated with me quite like the words of Anne Frank, a girl who was not much older than I was when I read her diary for the first time.  I still remember what it was like to read these words: “Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart.”  After everything she had endured, I wondered how Anne could maintain such a positive outlook on life.  Reading her diary filled me a desire to read more.  I wanted to know everything I could about the Holocaust and the people who were forever impacted by it, particularly the survivors and the victims.  I pored...

Pakistani Immigration In A Changing America

By in Immigrant NYC, Middle Eastern Immigration

The Pakistani community is an immigrant group that has largely experienced great social and economic mobility in the United States while also maintaining transnational ties to their homeland.  That spirit of mobility and transnationalism, however, was greatly impacted by the events of September 11, 2001. By Sarah Cappiello, Wagner College ’16 Interview with Dr. Salman Zafar For my project, I had the privilege of meeting and interviewing Dr. Salman Zafar, an active member of the Staten Island community as well as a Pakistani immigrant with a fascinating story to tell.  Throughout our time together he stressed to me, over and over again, the critical importance of education in his life and how it can be used to make a difference in the world.  Education was the whole reason why he and his wife chose to uproot their lives in Pakistan and make the transition to life in New York City....