Wasi

Wasi Mohamed was the director of the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh at the time of the synagogue shooting. In this episode, Wasi reflects on his early years growing up Muslim in Harrisburg, PA and his college years at the University of Pittsburgh. In his role as the director of the Islamic Center—his first job out out of college—he actively and vocally expressed the Muslim community’s solidarity with the Jewish community after the synagogue shooting. For Wasi, it was his pre-existing relationships with Jews that empowered him to show up for his friends and colleagues. This episode is adapted from an oral history interview conducted by Noah Schoen with Wasi Mohamed on February 1st, 2020 for the Meanings of October 27th oral history project. You can listen to the full unedited interview at The October 27 Archive website, which is managed by the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center: https://october27archive.org/profiles/wasiullah-wasi-mohamed To learn more or to donate to help us create more episodes like this one, visit october27podcast.org