We Can Be podcast - The Heinz Endowments
Society & Culture
When Wasi Mohamed led the Muslim community in an international fundraising effort that raised a quarter of a million dollars for the families of those killed in the attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the world got to know the man many have called “a 24-hours-a-day bridge-builder.”
Born and raised in an Indian-Muslim family in central Pennsylvania, Wasi recalls his childhood home being pelted with mustard packets and paint bombs, and dynamite exploding their mailbox.
“It changes who you are at a very young age,” he says.
But the change it spurred in Wasi was to push forward with palpable positivity when interacting with others and to follow a calling to build bridges between disparate communities, first as executive director of the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh, and currently addressing economic justice as Pittsburgh local director of community entrepreneurship with Forward Cities.
Wasi speaks with refreshing candor about how he’s seen the United States’ “wheel of oppression” roll in his lifetime, how we can regain the grace that has been lost by racist narratives that program division into our national character, and why he believes we can, indeed, be “different but united.”
“We Can Be” is hosted by Heinz Endowments President Grant Oliphant, and produced by the Endowments and Treehouse Media. Theme music by Josh Slifkin; incidental music by Giuseppe Capolupo. Guest image by Josh Franzos. Guest inquiries: Scott Roller at sroller@heinz.org.
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Groundbreaking Post-9/11 veterans data w/ Dr. Daniel Perkins, founder Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness @ Penn State Uni.(S04EP15)
Black Urban Gardeners’ Raqueeb Bey is growing food, minds & leaders (S04EP14)
PBS NewsHour’s Jeffrey Brown: Yes, the arts are essential & here’s why (S4E13)
”Your dreams are possible” w/ Dr. Kathy Humphrey, trailblazing pres. of Carlow University (S4E12)
Grant Oliphant on gratitude, speaking truth to power & making room for everyone (We Can Be S4EP11)
Facing America‘s crisis of connection w/ Jenn Hoos Rothberg, Einhorn Collaborative Exec. Dir. (We Can Be S04EP10)
The New Climate War author Michael Mann & the fight to take back our planet (We Can Be S04EP09)
Appalachia‘s battle b/w wish & hope w/ energy industry researcher Sean O’Leary (We Can Be S04EP08)
Environmental Health News investigative reporter Kristina Marusic uncovers hard truths & arms public w/ facts (We Can Be S04EP07)
The true cost of military service w/ War Horse founder/journalist Thomas Brennan (We Can Be S04EP06)
Reinventing Social Change author Nell Edgington on embracing abundance, joy & power of “yet” (We Can Be S04EP05)
Dr. Barry Kerzin, personal physician to Dalai Lama & Altruism in Medicine Institute founder on power of compassion (We Can Be S04EP04)
Rebuilding Appalachia for a new energy economy w/ Coalfield Development CEO Brandon Dennison (We Can Be S04EP03)
How & why radical generosity works w/ GivingTuesday co-founder Asha Curran (We Can Be S04EP02)
“Diversity Explosion” author/demographer William Frey on where America is headed & why it's good for us (S04EP01)
Bridging gap between university & community: The Center for Shared Prosperity (WeCanBeSpecEp)
Designing cities for justice w/ Toni Griffin, “Patterned Justice” co-editor & Harvard’s Just City Lab lead innovator (We Can Be S03EP12)
“Reach” author & BMe co-founder Trabian Shorters on the astounding power of asset framing (We Can Be S03EP11)
"White Fragility" author Robin DiAngelo: why it’s so hard for white people to talk about racism (S03EP10)
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