On Saturday afternoon the Association of Pakistani Physicians of New England and Boston University Organization of Pakistani Students co-hosted an event in the Metcalf Trustee Center. The keynote speaker was the Gold Star father who spoke at the Democratic National Convention, Khizr Khan. I walked in alone and there was a buffet of delicious Pakistani food that I totally indulged in. I took my plate to a table, sat alone and looked at the crowd. I didn’t know anyone. It was 2 p.m., my phone battery was at 29 percent and the event was set to go until 6 p.m. It was clear that the buffet would be enjoyed for a few hours before people started to speak, so I had a decent amount of time to kill.
I was feeling awkward because I definitely stood out as a white, non-science major, at an event hosted by an association of Pakistani physicians. I even thought at one point, “Maybe I don’t belong here, maybe I should leave.” But then I saw Khan walk in.
I watched him interact with the other people in the room and he exuded kindness. Alone at the table, I remembered I had a card and envelope in my bag so I scribbled a Thank You note to him. I was truly moved by his DNC speech and he is an incredible American, so I felt compelled to thank him. I approached him while he was sitting down on his phone and I handed him the note. We exchanged a few kind words, hugged and a photographer snapped several photos of us. It was a very warm moment that I will treasure forever.
Shortly after I met Mr. Khan, I ran into a friend I had made at the Nicholas Fuentes and Jake Brewer showdown, Ibrahim Rashid, founder of “My Muslim Friends.” I felt so relieved; I finally had someone to sit with and talk to. We went into the ballroom and prior to Khan’s talk, there was a panel of doctors from APPNE speaking about their careers. One thing that stood out for me was the patriotism and belief in the now elusive “American Dream,” shared by the doctors on the panel. Many of them were Muslim and either immigrants or children of immigrants. They spoke about their careers and work-life balance, and most of the Q&A session was about women in medicine. It was exhilarating because these doctors truly emphasized two incredibly profound points.
They emphasized that if you are doing something you love, it will not feel like work and that the network of Pakistani physicians will be a source of support for all those who want to network in the field of medicine. These messages, especially the second one, resonated with the predominantly Pakistani audience. As an outsider, I found the warmth and optimism in the room to be palpable.
Morale in the ballroom was high, and everyone was already very much inspired by the time Khan stood up to speak. He was greeted by a standing ovation and began his speech with a story. After the DNC, he had an outpouring of support from total strangers and the testimony of one mother stood out to him. Mr. Khan said that this mother approached him on the street and told him that her son was being bullied in school because he is hispanic. The woman’s son would come home crying because the kids at school would tell him that when Donald Trump became president, he would be “sent back home.” The only thing that calmed the son and gave him hope was listening to Khan’s speech when he got home from school. The mother realized this and then set up a viewing for his elementary school where all the kids watched Khan’s DNC speech. After that event, the child was not bullied in school again. The interaction between Mr. Khan and the woman on the street was one of extreme gratitude. Words truly matter and can change lives for the better.
I took away so much from this experience mostly because my phone ended up dying pretty early into the event. I was forced to engage sans echo-chamber and immerse myself in a community so different from my own. The outpouring of love, support, patriotism and understanding was universally felt. The most moving moment of the entire event was during Khan’s Q&A session when a member of APPNE said that the Pakistani Muslim community has very few national role models. Khan, however, has filled that role and is a role model for millions. Khan’s authenticity is his defining feature. It fills me with hope to know that all Americans, but particularly Muslims, in the United States have such a wonderful role model who is known for his bravery and strength.
However, this is also a major privilege check. Representation matters so much more than I could ever imagine, and as a white woman, attending this event served to remind me how fortunate I am to have so many people who look like me succeeding at the highest levels. There is much work to be done when it comes to healing the divides in this country. I believe that there is an obligation for those in positions of privilege like myself to both reflect on the nuances of their own privilege and connect with those whose experiences of oppression we will never be able to comprehend. President-elect Trump’s Cabinet choices have made it clear that the United States will undergo some extreme changes over his presidency. However, as citizens, we cannot let those changes alienate us from each other. Now more than ever, following Mr. Khan’s example of living a brave an authentic life is the most important thing we can be doing to heal the divides in our nation.
