The Ghouse Diary: My first day in New York and NYPD

Thursday, May 17, 2012

My first day in New York and NYPD

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2012/05/my-first-day-in-new-york-and-nypd.html

My passport picture 1979

On December 6, 1979, I landed in New York straight from Dhahran, Saudi Arabia and stayed at YMCA. Then I went for a walk in Manhattan...a gang of nearly eight men chased me, calling me an Iranian, like a stupid, I waved them my passport, that I was an Indian...one of them shouted, you' all are the same. I am glad they did not snatch it away...

I was told by my American fellow workers in Dhahran, not to go to New York for a visit, it is a different country... "we don't own it".. most of them were Californians. NY at that time was different as well.

Anyway, I did not know what to do, so I ran towards a police officer far away... the guys chased me, I was fast... I used to run 6 miles every morning in Saudi... when they saw I was closer to the police officer, they held back. I asked the officer if he can help me get to the subway, and he obliged.. the good man walked with me and waited till I boarded the sub....

I can never forget that day! The images are vivid. Elsewhere in the world, no one wants to be around cops, but this was a life changing experience to me, that I can go to cops. Since then, I have viewed cops as friendly folks guarding the safety of citizens. By the way, my daughter went through police training... she and I watched NYPD, she wants to be the shrink in that show… she has stayed the course and is graduating this Saturday and will pursue her Master in Social Work or Psychology. I have always had respect for police since then. The concept of police is different in the America, they are one of us living in our communities, I wish this approach becomes the norm in all other nations.

Of course there are bad cops, bad presidents of the United States, bad news reporters, bad Americans, bad Muslims, bad Christians, bad Jews, bad Palestinians, bad Indians, bad others, and bad parts of the city.... the 1% of badness in society is part of the whole we know, we see and interact. The evil is always 1% of everything in life and it will remain as such. It is up to us to see that 1% as 100% of a group or just 1%. of that group. I hope we learn to discern between 1% and 99%.

MikeGhouse is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam, India, Israel, peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington post, and several other periodicals across the world. The blog www.TheGhousediary.com is updated daily.

2 comments:

AnonymousMay 23, 2012 at 5:53 PM
I liked your 1% and 99% of every society.
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UnknownMarch 28, 2016 at 2:32 AM
Nice blog. Do have a look at Motivational Speaker in New York
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INTRODUCTION

Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions to media and to the public on important and complex issues of the day and is available to speak in a variety of settings such as schools, seminars, conferences, and places of worship, or the work place.

Mike is a frequent guest on Fox News, (The Hannity Show), and has been interviewed on nationally syndicated Radio shows along with Dallas TV, Print and Radio networks and occasional interviews on NPR. He is a member of the Texas Faith panel of Dallas Morning News and writes on issues facing the nation every week. He has spoken at international forums including the Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions, in Melbourne, Australia, Middle East Peace Initiative, in Jerusalem, the International Leadership conference, in Hawaii, and in Washington

The Foundation for Pluralism champions the idea of co-existence by respecting and accepting the otherness of those different from ourselves. The World Muslim Congress is committed to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam. Heavily involved in both, Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies and has produced outstanding public events to bring Americans together of different religions, ethnicities and races on common grounds of building a safe and secure America.

He is a speaker, thinker, collaborator and a writer on the subjects of Pluralism, the interfaith movement, cohesive societies, Islam, India, hope and world peace. Over 1000 articles of Mike’s have been published worldwide and two books are poised to be released this summer. His work is reflected in 4 websites and 27 Blogs indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/
C
oncerned by the divisiveness, he saw the need to bring Americans together and founded America Together Foundation committed to building a cohesive America, indeed it is in response to ACT America which is bent on pitching one American against the other. We will be holding series of educational programs, conferences and workshops to address the issues that divide us such as Civil Right, GLBT, Quraan, Abortion, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, Racial Profiling and Stereotyping.

The Annual Unity Day USA is in its 7th year now, it is a purposeful event to bring Americans together, on this Unity Day, we the people of the United States of America of every faith, race, ethnicity, culture and background will gather to express our commitment to co-existence, unity, prosperity and wellbeing of our nation.

Thanksgiving Celebration is in its 15th year showcasing cultural diversity.

The 5th Annual Reflections on Holocaust and Genocides is to learn and to acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things we have inflicted upon each other and commit to avert such tragedies. Through this event non-Jewish people have consciously learned about Holocaust for the first time, it was also for the first time that people of 14 faiths came together to join in to commemorate the Holocaust that commemorated within the Jewish Community for years. They are not alone anymore in their anguish, we are all in it together with them, and it is a Muslim initiative to effect a positive change.

The programs, seminars and workshops conducted by the Foundation for Pluralism have become a part of the America Together Foundation. While the Foundation for Pluralism continues championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other, the commitment to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam through the World Muslim Congress continues.

Mike is a speaker, thinker, collaborator and a writer on the subjects of Pluralism, the Interfaith Movement, Cohesive Societies, Islam, India, Hope and World Peace. Over 1000 of his articles have been published worldwide and two books are poised to be released this summer. His work is reflected in 4 websites and 27 Blogs indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net

To engage Mike in a dialogue, conference or a talk, write to Ghousespeaks@gmail.com and email dedicated for this purpose or you can call him on a short notice at 214.325.1916