Wesam Nassar, my pal and producing partner, put together a short interview with Dave Eggers about Abdulrahman Zeitoun and his family, the subject of his most recent book.
It is an excellent book, by the way. On the one hand Eggers tells the amazing true story of a man choosing to stay in New Orleans during Katrina. On the other hand he illustrates the experience of being an immigrant Syrian Muslim in Bush’s US. And though those both seem like themes that would dominate any story, in the end what I was most left with is the strength of the Zetioun family (here and around the world), and their determination to hold together through anything, without compromising their values or beliefs.
(Sorry, was that too serious for MM? I’ll post some more pictures of garbage on the sidewalk soon enough)
[...] from Mission Mission. Filed Under: Today's Mission This entry was written by Lydia Chávez, posted on at 6:49 pm, [...]
As an elder, it’s hopeful and comforting to see this seriousness on MM. Beautiful video, important story, and I’m going to buy and read the book. Dave Eggers has held together through difficulty and heartbreak to tell this story so well.
Thanks for this.
The garbage will always be around.
I’ve volunteered a couple of times down in NOLA to help rebuild homes…. In the back of my mind, I knew something like this had to be going on – but never really heard much about it. (all the focus was on re-building). I will definitely get the book. Thanks so much for the post! (also love that the book supports several causes and isn’t sucking up funds via admin costs). Makes me like Dave even more.
Great book! Could not believe all his rights were taken away with no due process whatever. Maybe FEMA should be separated from Homeland Security because of paranoia on the part of officials. Let Homeland Security investigate terrorism and let FEMA do its job of administering aid to those suffering from natural disasters such as Katrina.