Oral History Interview with Sabirah Mahmud

DESCRIPTION
Oral history interview with Sabirah Mahmud, conducted by Philadelphia Fellow Maha Rahman.

Sabirah is 20 and lives in West Philadelphia, where she attends the University of Pennsylvania. She was born in New York City and lived there for four years before moving to Philadelphia with her family. She describes her family’s close connection and involvement in the Bangladeshi communities of both New York and Philadelphia and their experiences of immigrating to the US. Through stories of her childhood, Sabirah shares how she came to understand how race, class, and gender both manifest in daily lived experience and function on a structural level. She and her family experienced racism from classmates and colorism from within the community and family. She has observed a rapid transformation of the West Philly neighborhood she grew up in and describes the gentrification and displacement she witnessed. Sabirah also explores the ways in which her principles of religion, cultural, and historical understanding interact and reinforce her connection with each other.

AUDIO
Duration: 01:09:20

ADDITIONAL METADATA
Date: August 1, 2022
Subject(s): Sabirah Mahmud
Type: Oral History
Language: English
Creator: Maha Rahman
Location: Philadelphia, PA

PROVENANCE
Collection: Maha Rahman Fellowship Project
Item History: 2024-04-03 (created); 2024-04-17 (modified)

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