Mohamed Shoreibah and Lynda Wilson

[00:07] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Hi, my name is Mohamed Sharifah. I am 37 year old, 47 year old. I'm cheating big time here. Sorry about that. And today is November 13, and it's 2021, and I am in Birmingham, Alabama. My partner is Lynda and we are participating in one small step conversation.

[00:32] LYNDA WILSON: And I'm Lynda Wilson. I'm 72 years old. Today is Saturday, November 13, 2021. I'm in Birmingham, Alabama, and my partner is Mohamed And we are one small step conversation partners.

[00:49] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I wanted to participate in that particular discussion because I truly believe that we have a lot that we agree on more than what we disagree on. And I almost think that the best way to realize that is to start the discussion and to talk.

[01:08] LYNDA WILSON: Yes, and I would say very similar, Mohamed I had heard about one small step last year during the political campaign of 2020, and I just think there's been so much polarization to encourage. Dialogue is great. And then Melissa Velasquez actually reached out to me as I'm president of a nonprofit group called the Alabama Interfaith refugee partnership. And we are eager, we're promoting these one small step conversations around the general theme of immigration. So it's both just general discussion and specifically around immigration. I'm eager to promote dialogue.

[01:53] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I'm truly glad to be part of this discussion today. Lynda That's a topic that very close to me and definitely want to participate. So Lynda is a retired nursing professor and currently serves as a president of a nonprofit organization based in Birmingham, Alabama. Linda's maternal great grandparents immigrated to Minnesota from Norway, and her paternal great grandparents immigrated to the United States from England. She grew up in Arlington, Virginia, and she has two grown up children. And she is very concerned about social justice, immigration reform.

[02:45] LYNDA WILSON: And let's see, Mohamed I think, yeah, there. Mohamed is an american Muslim living in Birmingham, Alabama, with his wife and two children. He came to the US from Egypt to complete postgraduate education in medicine and business in 2001. He never thought he'd end up staying, but he did and is now a proud Us citizen. He and his family. Is this country perfect? He says no, but what sets it apart in my eyes is that there's an unrelenting strive to reach that perfection, equity, freedom for all. And that is what he and his family fell in love with.

[03:37] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: So, Lynda what I would love to know more about is your career in nursing. How was that, and how did you balance that along with family responsibilities and social duties and all of those things? Being a busy professional?

[03:56] LYNDA WILSON: Yes, it was a challenge. In fact, I started my nursing career in clinical nursing, in hospital. I did some public health nursing. But when my first child was born, I was drawn to nursing education. One reason is because my first job at the University of Tennessee, I had the summers off. And I thought that is a better way to balance mothering with professional life. Over the many years, I, I got involved in a lot of research, and the past 15 years, I was teaching in Birmingham, Alabama. I directed the global health programs in the nursing school. We had a World Health Organization collaborating center on international nursing. So I think that led to my interest in retirement and getting involved with this refugee partnership. And I'd love to know more about, in your bio, Mohamed how you happen to choose Birmingham from Egypt and your involvement with the muslim community here in Birmingham.

[05:08] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I think 20 years ago, if you would have told me that I will end up in Birmingham, Alabama, I wouldn't have believed that. So I started way up north in New Jersey, and then we migrated for work and studying purposes, my wife and I, all the way south to Birmingham, Alabama. We spent some time in rural parts of Kansas and about four years in Florida. And I was just reminded by my wife, Reem, that we spent in Birmingham the longest time as a married couple compared to anywhere else, including Cairo, Egypt. So it's been really quite an experience for us and for our children. I think being an american Muslim is quite a bit of identity, to say the least. And there are two choices and a few in between when you first come here to the US, that you either embrace this idea of being a Muslim and try your best to reflect the true image of your belief and your practice, or you can completely hide away from that. And I chose the first option, and I respect the other choices in between. And on the other extreme, has it.

[06:47] LYNDA WILSON: Been difficult for you choosing that first option and in particular, following 911 and even following the 2016 election, when there was quite a bit of, I would say, islamophobia in the news and social media.

[07:06] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Yeah, it's very interesting that you mentioned that point in particular, Lynda because that was the moment of making that choice. So September 11, 2001, in the ICU in New Jersey, and I was serving as a first year resident there. And on the tv monitors, we can see the event happening. And we were told that we're not going to leave the hospital and we'll stay put there in case we have to deal with any casualties since we're in the vicinity. And I remember one of the senior colleagues there saying, I know who did it. It's the islamist terrorist. And when I heard that, I was having mixed emotions of being surprised and being shocked and feeling immediately judged. And I made the decision that I'll make it part of my mission of being here to try to change that.

[08:28] LYNDA WILSON: Wow. Wow. That's. I'm glad that you did, Mohamed Wow. Could we pause for just 1 second, Kevin? I'm hearing some background noise here.

[08:58] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: So I wanted to tell you about the person who's been the most influential in my life and what I learned from that person. So this is a question that requires quite a bit of reflection, and you want to make sure that you're fair when you make that choice. If I had to, I would definitely say my mother. So she was a very strong woman and she kept up with professional responsibilities and social and family responsibilities. In addition to that, she represented the best of what I want to be in terms of commitment, perseverance. And when I think about what I try to do for my family and my children those days, I hope that I am doing a fraction of what she did for us as a family.

[09:57] LYNDA WILSON: Wow. Yeah. That's a very interesting question to think about, isn't it, Mohamed For me, I tried to reflect on this and I sometimes am reluctant to answer because there have been so many influential people. But I think I'm going to say my sister. I have a sister who's a year and a half younger and she is deaf. Her hearing loss was determined when she was about six years old by a school nurse, actually, and she gradually lost her hearing and ended up learning sign language and teaching at a world renowned university for the deaf in Washington, DC called Gallaudet University. But I have learned so much watching her over the years, how she has really surmounted a major challenge. She was in public schools until the 10th grade and did not even learn sign language until she finished high school. And I think my parents were trying to encourage her to learn lip reading, et cetera. But she subsequently has earned bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees and gotten very involved as a social worker. And so she's been inspiring. In fact, now in my seventies, as my hearing is deteriorating, she's really an inspiration to me. We practice on Zoom every week. Sign language. In case I might need sign language if my hearing really gets bad. And I think she remains an inspiration about how you can surmount things that might seem to be big obstacles in your life.

[11:51] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: If I may say. It's just impressive to see someone who overcomes challenges and chooses to work a field to help people with their own challenges there. That is something really. I'm not surprised that you chose her and my political values that I believe in simply revolve around knowing that we are in one boat, whether we're talking about this country or the entire world even. And we've been through historically, we've been through a lot of situations that made that point clear to us. And I think the pandemic is a great example on that. So I find that hard to define myself necessarily as a Democrat, independent or a Republican. I kind of have certain themes and beliefs that would probably fit sometimes into what the Democrats believe in or what the Republicans or the independent. So I have strong opinions regarding social justice and social support. And I truly believe that none of us is well off because we worked harder. I just think that it happened to be, and we are given a kind of responsibility or entitlement, that we will be judged on how we handle that and how we help each other. So it's not really that you're giving someone help or handout. It's your duty as a part of a society, society or even a global society. So that's how I view social responsibilities. And sometimes that would be given a certain cast or definition that's used for political reason. I'm not sure that there's anything wrong with defining socialism the right way. It needs to be defined. And if that means that we take care of each other, well, that's in the core of ethics, religions and every good thing that we try to abide by. So that is probably the biggest thing that shapes my political thinking and views and who I would vote for. I just think that we moved away from kindness and understanding how others are suffering and the need to help them out to a view of this is what I deserve. And that's how hard I had to work and get to that point. And I don't think this is true at all.

[15:01] LYNDA WILSON: Well, it sounds, Mohamed like you and I are very, very alike in terms of that, that value system and probably translating into political views. I don't think I could articulate my view any more clearly than you have. I feel very, very in line with what you've described. And I think that that does, I have been a lifelong Democrat probably because of that. And I'm finding right now, not that, I mean, I haven't had anything against Republicans or anything, but I'm feeling like there's been so much polarization, especially in the last four years, and, you know, even labeling Democrats as evil because of being, quote, socialist. And I, too, have a view that socialism in its pure form is basically caring for one another. And, you know, the social, the responsibility of a government or a society or community is to lift up those and to give equal opportunity to others. So I think we're very much compatible with those views.

[16:20] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I hope we can get to understand the views of the other side, too, and see if we can get to common ground. So I certainly believe in the importance of that social safety and network that you need to have for the vulnerables and the needy. And I think part of that is to work hard on getting those on track to independence and to having them build their own network, even in supporting others at a certain point. So maybe if the understanding is that you support someone because that's your duty, and soon enough they will be independent and able to support others, rather than saying, this is totally different from, you know, encouraging someone not to work or get better, that's understandable. So maybe that's the common ground that we need to find there.

[17:24] LYNDA WILSON: Yeah, that's a good point. You know, and bringing it to the issue of immigration in the work that our interfaith partnership is, the whole goal is to help people to achieve independence and self sufficiency and integration into the us culture. If it works out that people are able to become permanent residents and then citizens, it's not to promote dependency or colonial kind of mentality. And so I think that could be a common ground that, you know, in our us society, everyone really has immigrant roots here, you know, when we think about it, and I think just recognizing that and nurturing it because it's a source of wonderful opportunity for the larger society to learn from others and to be enriched by diverse cultures, that could hopefully be common ground.

[18:32] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I couldn't agree more. That's the promise. And that's why this country is great, because of the melting pot. That's what we always heard about the US coming here. And sometimes that rosy picture may not be the reality when you come here and when you start talking to people. I am different than the average in everything in my name and the color of my skin and how I look and in my accent. And I definitely got comments regarding that that I wouldn't mind sharing with you just to get engaged further in that discussion. But if I recall meeting someone in Kansas and he told me, I can tell by your looks and the way you talk that you're not a native of this country. But that's all right. So I said, well, I'm glad to hear that from you, but are you a native of this country? So the gentleman told me, of course I am. So I asked him to make a point, not to be sarcastic at all. I said, so which tribe do you belong to? So he was taken back by this comment, and he told me, no, I am not that native. So I told him, well, the beauty of this country is that it's truly a mix of cultures and it's a melting pot. And you can trace a lot of people back to other places, and they loved this place and decided to stay here. So I feel sometimes that some people that live in this country have a hard to explain sense of ownership. And I think nothing wrong about being proud of being american. Of course, we are all proud to be american, but it's. It's as if you are not at the same class. I have been here longer. Maybe I feel that I am more worthy of being american than you. I just hope that people understand that those who decided to live their loved ones and their entire lives and come here to pursue the dream of happiness and freedom, they love these countries just as much. They are Americans to the core, also.

[21:18] LYNDA WILSON: Yeah, that's such an important point, Mohamed I'm really glad you shared that. And, you know, the notion that people be actually the only true non immigrants in terms of heritage in this country would be the native american people and the history of the injustice that actually happened when the white colonial people came and then slavery, I feel like it's so important for us to at least recognize that. And there's kind of a movement in some political groups to not even acknowledge that that somehow is diminishing the worth of maybe white Americans. And I think it's all gotten so mixed up in terms of our division in society. I'm hoping that these kinds of conversations can help us just acknowledge that and then move forward together.

[22:27] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I agree. I agree. We need that proper healing and closure of any mistakes that happened in the past. And part of that is to acknowledge those mistakes and to make sure that they don't happen again. And that's the right thing to do. And if you look at certain countries that happen to have problems that were related to ethnicity or discrimination, the way they moved forward is that they acknowledged those issues that happened in the past and learned the lesson really well.

[23:11] LYNDA WILSON: Yes.

[23:14] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: So I wanted to take you back to where I was born and where I grew up and how it was. So I was born in Cairo, Egypt, and I was one of three children in the family. And my father was a practicing physician, an outstanding role model for us as children. And my mother was the pillar of the house, really the one who kept everything in order and was the ultimate decision maker, in my opinion. It was great growing up there. We have a lot of challenges as a country. And I always felt that looking back at how great of a civilization we had at one time, probably we always have that hope and feeling that there is really what it takes to be great there. We just are missing some elements of organization and how to move forward. And I always thought that the greatness of a place and the people there rests really on the foundations of freedom of expression and equality and all of those great principles that we have here in the US. And I think that's what sets this country apart, really. And that's what we have to fight hard for to keep it alive.

[25:02] LYNDA WILSON: Wow. Interesting. Well, I was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, and after a year my family moved to the Washington, DC area, which is where I grew up in Alexandria and then Arlington, Virginia. And my mother was a stay at home mom, and my father worked in the kind of business world, I guess he was a manufacturer's representative, meaning he tried to promote business deals, I guess the best I could understand. And I was the middle child. I have an older sister, ten years older, who's a step sister, and then my younger sister I mentioned, who became deaf. So it was a comfortable, happy childhood. And I went to nursing school at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. And I think it was the time of the sixties and I became, that's when my social justice consciousness, I think, emerged. I became very involved in the anti Vietnam war movement and protests and in the civil rights struggles, and I think that has remained to this day. So that was an influential time in my life.

[26:31] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: That is pretty impressive. It amazes me how everybody looks at the time, at least looked at the anti Vietnam war movement as a bunch of young people that do not know what's right and what's wrong, and they just don't want to take responsibility and protect their country. But if it wasn't for that movement, we would have been stuck longer and longer in a conflict that did not benefit anybody at all. So it reminds me now of all of those calls that we hear about social justice and immigration, preserving the environment, and how we are just starting to listen and taking it a bit seriously. But I hope they work the same way and change the trajectory of history, just like you did when you protested.

[27:34] LYNDA WILSON: I have a lot of hope with the younger generation, but I have seven grandchildren and one of them has finished college. One is in college, the other, they range in age from six months to 21 years of age. But I think the older ones are conscious of wanting to make things better. But I'm afraid I also sense a little bit of what's the right word, whether it's sort of pessimism and frustration with the, with the way the world is. And I hope that the younger generation won't give up and will be motivated to really try to make things better. And a real worry is all of this polarization we're seeing and how that's affecting the young people. And I, you know, you mentioned Mohamed about how freedom of communication and expression is so important, and I agree. But I'm also really worried about the misinformation that gets promoted by this freedom of expression, which I don't know the answer to that. But do you have any thoughts about that? Because I know, I believe in Egypt and many countries, there has been a crackdown, for example, on Facebook, you know, with the Arab Spring, and, you know, how social media was promoting a lot of the young people to. And then the governments were cracking down. So I, from this country, we were opposed to that. But on the other hand, I can see, I wonder what you think about that.

[29:24] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I think that the access to information and the expression of opinion is vital, but you need the trustworthy sources, too, to represent that. And I'll tell you an example of what I am talking about here is we have a lot of issues with people getting radicalized where I come from and adopting certain ideology. And I definitely take issue with the term islamic terrorist. You know, have to say that if we look at the KKK and tie them by any means to a religion, then that's a shame, you know, and quite a bit of ignorance, and I feel the same way about those terrors there. But my point is we looked at those quite a bit, and we always told the world, those people are radicalized. They are brainwashed. And we never thought that someone could get to that extreme just based on misinformation. So what you're bringing up here is quite serious, that if those young people are exposed to misinformation, young or old, and they buy into certain narratives and they believe it to the core and it leads to radicalization, then we're really on a bad trajectory here. And if something like that can happen in the most civil society in the US, then now we understand how it happened in parts of the Middle east. We are entitled disagreements, but we have to be objective about our disagreements. We have to listen to the other side, and we have to hold the politicians accountable to what they say and what they do. That will work well for all of us. But I am afraid that if we let corrupt politicians or misinformation go wild through the society here, that's not going to be a good situation at all. Part of having a good democracy, I think, is having a bit of fragility there, meaning that people have the right to protest and they have the right to express their opinion. And even when the sad scene evolved of people reaching the capital, in my opinion, there was a silver lining there, that we didn't see tanks, you know, firing on them or, or we didn't see them put in prisons without a due process. So I think part of that, of the viable democracy is to accept that fragility. But I am afraid that things are going to get out of hand and get out of control if people are believing that Kennedy is not dead or the vaccine is going to mutate us and all of those things that are completely unfounded. So how to battle that and create a trustworthy source of information? That's a challenge.

[32:48] LYNDA WILSON: Yes.

[32:49] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Yes.

[32:49] LYNDA WILSON: Do you have thoughts about. My stepson works for Facebook, and it's interesting because Facebook has come under a lot of pressure, you know, as contributing to some of this misinformation and not doing enough to take, to do, to monitor with these algorithms things that are anti vaccine or things that are clearly not true.

[33:14] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Yes.

[33:14] LYNDA WILSON: It just, and it's, I think it's been a really difficult job for them, especially in many countries where they do not have staff monitoring in other languages. What's being promoted? You know? Do you have thoughts about how we can address this issue?

[33:36] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I think that part of, of addressing this is to allow for both sides to debate in an organized format and present their evidence. So I don't think that Facebook shutting down certain voices is going to work. They will find a different platform. What if Facebook or other media sources, we don't want necessarily to single out any particular media, media outlet, but what if they truly allow both sides to have an objective debate and present their evidence? That's what we're missing those days. People go to a certain media outlet because they want to hear certain things, and they are guaranteed to hear that. And I think the media needs to act again as an honest broker. And big part of their job is to allow both voices to be heard. There used to be, on a certain news network, a program where two political bundles will set and debate matters from both sides. And I kind of enjoyed that very much because at the end, you may find yourself agreeing on certain points with the Democrat or, or the Republican. And I think we need to go back to that again, let's have a debate and make it evidence based, but do not shut down the sources of the information. I don't think that, on its own, is going to be adequate.

[35:28] LYNDA WILSON: That's a really interesting idea. That would be something that's very doable. You know, in a way, this one small step is not necessarily encouraging a debate, but just encouraging dialogue. And so building on that, in fact, that might be something our Alabama interfaith refugee partnership could actually promote, a debate or a discussion around a specific immigration reform proposal. Let's just say that's evidence based and civilization. That's a really good suggestion.

[36:03] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I agree. I agree. The next thing that I wanted to tell you about, Lynda is how did I get to live here in Alabama, and what presumptions did I have about living here? So I'm obviously from a totally different culture, and I grew up elsewhere, and I did not really have preconceived notions about being here, but I knew the history, and I knew the history of the struggles and discrimination against African Americans. And the silver lining was that this is the same place, also, where civil rights movements were born. So I was enthusiastic to see that place. In fact, I have to tell you that one of my very first three weekends, one of my colleagues at work is from Egypt, too. And he said, where are you taking the kids this weekend? So I said, well, I'm going to take them to the civil rights museum. And they were at that time, still quite young, so the ages of ten and 13. And I decided to do that. And his kids were about the same age, so we took them there. And it was quite an experience because you really hear, you know, good people that had good views and good people that had bad views in the same. Under the same roof. So you hear about people talking about how great it is to operate, uh, people from each other based on their color, and that's the right way, and that's how God intended things to do. So it was an eye opening experience. And I think the biggest surprise to me is that that was not a very far history. We're not talking about a century or something. So I, um. I did that as the first site that I wanted to see in Birmingham, Alabama. And I met my friend a few weeks later, and I asked him, what are you doing this weekend? And he said, I'm not sure. I checked with the kids, and it doesn't. It doesn't look like they want to go out this weekend with me. It looks like they had quite a bit of emotional turmoil with that trip. To the civil rights museum. But I really think that it shaped my daughter's interest, for example, in civil rights and women's rights and so forth. So I think it's been great to live here in Alabama. One last note is that I went out for protests way more than any other place that I have lived in. So I acknowledge that, too.

[39:02] LYNDA WILSON: Wow, that's interesting. What sort of protests have you been involved with?

[39:07] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Yes, ma'am. So when the events evolved, and last year with the Black Lives Matter, I was out there. Several other events, including the shooting that happened in the synagogue. So we had busy schedules for a while. And I'm proud to admit that a lot of that was initiated by our kids actually reminding us that there is a protest happening and an event happening that weekend. We would like to attend it. And I am great that they came to that point where they are the ones initiating that.

[40:00] LYNDA WILSON: Wow, that's beautiful. That's something. Something to be proud of and that you have helped to nurture that passion and values and concern with justice. That's beautiful. Well, I came to live in Alabama in 1986. My ex husband and I were both teaching at the University of Tennessee and got jobs teaching in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. And I had heard the history, too, and really didn't want to come to Alabama because I felt like there was such a legacy of racism, and. But we had opportunity for more income with our teaching job, so we chose to come. And I'm still here. I kind of like you. I didn't think I would be here that long, but it's been over 30 years, and I've got. I have found, like you, that it does have a history, and there is still injustice and, you know, a lot of institutional racism. I think that we still have to surmount, but it's not unique to Alabama or even the United States. It's, you know, so I think I have made wonderful friends and found a lot of people really trying to move beyond that legacy, and that has been what has wanted to keep me here. Let's see. I see there was a question, too, about presumptions, about immigrants and those from other parts of the country. My work in nursing and doing. I was really interested in global health and trying to get our nursing students to expand their awareness of life beyond the United States, because I do feel like many people in the US don't have a concept of what life is in so many parts of the world, and particularly the global south. My husband and I both did some work in Africa, and I've done a lot of work in Latin America. And so I got really interested in some of my classes when we would have. I did some teaching around neonatal intensive care and developmental care. So sometimes I would invite a nurse from Zambia to be on the call with the nurse manager here at the NICU and UAB. And just to compare, you know, how many babies per shift would a nurse have in Africa compared to here? And I just feel like if we could be more aware of the challenges faced by people in other places, we might understand the push for immigrants to try to come to the US and have more understanding and compassion.

[43:07] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I couldn't agree more with that sentiment. And I will tell you, being on the other side there, I felt that if I want to be an immigrant somewhere, it's the US where I want to be, because that's the promise there of equality and pursuit of happiness. And I echo your sentiment there. Our survival is dependent on each other and that extends beyond borders. And we experienced that quite a bit last year. And I agree with you that we should have a more global perspective at looking at issues.

[43:49] LYNDA WILSON: Yeah.

[43:50] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Wow. And I want to go back again to living in Birmingham. We talked about the stereotypes and what we knew about Birmingham and about Alabama, but I am really pleasantly surprised by how much energy is there towards change and towards integration and the interfaith activities. Like I said, I feel like the spirit of those great people that fought for freedom in the past still carrying through here. So I have to say that despite all of the stereotypes and the preconceived notions that 1 may have about Alabama, Birmingham is different. Birmingham is, in my opinion, a powerhouse. And eventually I feel like good will prevail there.

[44:56] LYNDA WILSON: I have many of those optimistic experiences and hopes. I think. I wish we were a more truly integrated community. I see, especially in where people live and the school systems, so much segregation still. And I really feel like a lot of this is the economic legacy of institutional racism that's going to take a long time to overcome. I mean, I look in my own neighborhood, it's primarily white, you know, middle class, upper middle class. And I feel very fortunate to have this. This life, you know, and I wish everyone, I mean, I just wish, I think that's a frustration to me, that we aren't truly a really integrated community, both racially and economically at this point.

[45:59] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Yes, I agree with you on that. And I feel after our long discussion and considering our backgrounds and how different they may seem, but the fact that we agree on a lot of what we would like to see for ourselves, our families and our children and our community in Birmingham, in Alabama or globally. I really feel that there is a lot of hope there that things will change. And I'm like you. It really touched me when you, when you said, I wish everybody was that fortunate. So I, I feel the same way that I really think that people work hard and people go through a lot of struggles, and sometimes we think that we worked harder and harder, and that's why we're fortunate. I don't think there's any truth to that. And we need to be humbled and realize that we were given a gift and we should share that with others and try to lift them up, too.

[47:09] LYNDA WILSON: Wow. Oh, Mohamed this has been such a wonderful pleasure for me to have this time to talk with you. And I feel like I'd like to get to know you and your family more after this conversation. Just, it's a nice thing, even though we're all in the same community. It's a big community, so often paths don't cross. So it's been a real honor and pleasure to be able to talk with.

[47:35] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: You today, and I enjoyed that very much, Lynda and I want to hear from you what advice you would give to future generations. I feel like I do not want to pass on that opportunity.

[47:53] LYNDA WILSON: Hearing from you, I think it says, and who might listen to this in 50 years? I would say. I'd like to say there's always room to learn from the past and from past mistakes and to make things better, and that I feel like, as humans, we're all interconnected now I'm getting more involved in something called planetary health. So it's not just humans, it's animals and our whole ecosystem. And I would like to say, let's continue all working together to make this a healthy and just planet for all of us to continue to live on and not to give up.

[48:41] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: And I would echo what you said, and I will tell those future generations that we are preoccupied every minute, every hour and every day by how to preserve what we have here, and even better, it for you to enjoy it as much as we enjoyed it. This is the most beautiful, inhabitable place, if we can keep it the way it is. It surprises me sometimes how we look in the outer space and try to make it inhabitable while we have the best here and we can preserve it. So I hope that we can preserve it for you to enjoy it as much as we do.

[49:22] LYNDA WILSON: Oh, that's great. And I think, I know we're getting down to the last few minutes here. I would just also like to encourage ongoing dialogue around the issue of immigration in particular, as we have. It touches on all the themes I think we've talked about today, that there are many people all over the world. You know, I think it's. The United nations has figures of over 80 million displaced people in the world, 20 some million refugees, 3 million asylum seekers. And many are truly on the move because of fear of persecution if they stay where they are. Some are on the move for better economic conditions, which is understandable. But instead of viewing people who are coming here as, you know, criminals or taking jobs away, being open to the welcoming people here and helping people to have a future that will enrich us all, that's one takeaway I'd like to share. And what about you, Mohamed

[50:38] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: I couldn't agree more. It touches me on a personal level there, and I agree that we should be more welcoming and more open minded about this issue there. And remember that that's what made this country great, and that's what will maintain it, that we stay open to new people that are coming to pursue and refresh that dream of happiness and freedom.

[51:07] LYNDA WILSON: Wow. That's great. Well, it's really been a pleasure, and I appreciate one small step in Storycorps for facilitating this, and our Alabama interfaith refugee partnership welcomes the opportunity. We're hoping that we might be able to share the link to these stories that are recorded and made available in the archives so that it could be educational for the wider community.

[51:39] MOHAMED SHARIFAH: Thank you very much for what you do, Lynda and to everybody in your organization, that was extremely useful and enjoyable for me. Thank you. Great.