A life of success is not termed an achievement until impact is made. Impact is to meet the needs of others directly or indirectly, it is to benefit others through your success and also to positively affect the life of others through your journey in life. While a number of people are aware of this phenomenon, a large number have left this ideology behind. Speaking of those who are fully aware of this great advantage, let’s consider Leila Janah who is a sun setting on some rural parts of the world. Janah is the daughter of Indian immigrants who left Mumbai in the late 70’s to the United States in search of a greener pasture. Her parents were learned and had no intentions for education in the states but to raise their standard of living which was a priority. On getting to US they had their first child Leila on…
Olympian Fencer: Changing the Narrative for Muslim Athletes
Ibtihaj Muhammad is the first female Muslim-American athlete to earn a medal at the Olympics. She was born in Maplewood, New Jersey, where she was raised by her African American Muslim parents, alongside four siblings. Her dad was a retired Newark, New Jersey police officer, and her mum an elementary school special education teacher. Ibtihaj’s parents were already blessed with four children before she was born. Growing up, she had a special attraction for sports, but one thing stood as a limitation between her and her love for sports, which was her religious obligations that demands her modest appearance. Her religion allows for a woman to dress in a manner whereby most parts of the body are covered leaving out some functional areas for external engagements. In accordance with her beliefs, she couldn’t participate in a number of sports that conflicted with her religious observance to dressing modestly. Although she…
Habiba Nosheen: The Voice behind the Camera
Pakistani-Canadian journalist Habiba Nosheen was born in Lahore, the capital city of Pakistan in1982, where she spent her early years. Her family migrated to Toronto Canada as refugees, when she was nine years old. Growing up in Toronto, Nosheen obtained a bachelors degree from the University of Toronto, a Masters from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and a second Masters degree from York University, Toronto in Women’s Studies. She started her career in journalism as a reporter at the CBC Radio Pakistan where she was later nominated to report for Kroc Fellowship, on-air for NPR ‘s Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Nosheen’s successes did not come without the peculiar challenges of a woman of colour, threading the forbidden part of investigative reporting; she started her investigative reporting named, “To Adopt A Child” in 2012, a report that highlighted the story on the murky side of adoptions from Nepal,…
Black Don’t Crack: A Story of Congress Woman Mia Love
In 1975, Brooklyn witnessed the birth of a heroin and a spectacular trailblazer. She was born as Ludmya Bourdeau but presently known as Mia Love. Mia Love who happens to be the first black female Republican Party member to be elected into a US Congress was born on the 6th of December 1975 but was raised in Connecticut by her Haitian parents, Maxime and Marie Bourdeau. She was raised with very little resources and had a humble childhood. She was the youngest of three children born to her Roman Catholic parents. When Mia’s parents migrated from Haiti to the US, things were a bit difficult because they got into the country with a tourist visa which only afforded them a temporary stay. At the birth of Mia, the couple got a permanent residue status based on the immigration law at that time that grants immigrants from the Western Hemisphere who…
The Philanthropic Solution to Gender Based Violence
Topics on domestic violence as one of the major challenges women are faced in the world today, has taken center stage in women conferences and meetings. Governments of the world have begun to push legislative actions geared towards protecting women. In the midst of all the drama regarding women’s right and advocacy, philanthropist like Indrani Goradia, have laid out all they have, money, time and energy to eradicate the abuse which greatly affects most women and girls. Indrani Goradia is a survivor of domestic violence from Trinidad and Tobago, and of Indian descent where gender-based violence is not taken seriously and victims are afraid to speak out even though they are dire need of help. She had suffered from the menace as a child and young adult, but has chosen to spend the rest of her championing the crusade against the abused girls and women, while catering for victims of…
Pushpa Basnet: A Diamond in Nepal
By Miracle Nwankwo Two years ago Nepal was consumed by a disastrous earthquake that claimed the lives of nearly 9,000 people and injured nearly 22,000. The earthquake caused a lot of damages that led to new beginnings for many individuals. But in a little place in Kathmandu of Nepal existed a beautiful home called the Butterfly Home, a home for peculiar kind of children whose parents have been held bound behind the four walls of Nepal prison yards. They were picked up from these prisons away from their inmate parent to this home. The owner of this home is a young Nepali social worker Pushpa Basnet founder of the Early Childhood Development Center (ECDC) the academic arm of the foundation. Pushpa was still an undergraduate when the burden to establish a home for the children of prisoners which she often met during her social work service to the prison yards,…
Chan Yuen Ting: Thriving in a Male-dominated Field
Recognizing a female trailblazer is commending the efforts of exceptional women who amidst all odds have defied stereotypes and created paths for others to follow. These women can be found in any part of the world and in all sphere of life. Ranging from one profession to another, they make their mark through persistence and achieve outstanding success. In this article, we will be looking at the story of Chan Yuen Ting the first woman to coach a men’s professional association football team to the championship of a nation’s top league. This is very strange but true because a passionate lady refused to give up on her dreams. Chan Yuen Ting was born on the 7 of October 1988, from her childhood days her heart was craving for football, her parent thought it was wise to let her explore her passion since she was only a child and they had…