|
 Halal
Turkey
NOV 23: For most Americans, the Thanksgiving turkey hunt
starts and ends by opening a supermarket freezer door and
heaving a shrink-wrapped bird reminiscent of a cannonball
into a shopping cart.
But when it comes to buying the poultry Halal that would
serve party of six or eight Thursday, many Muslim Americans
and immigrants go to Morsy Farm, an unassuming, single-story building on the
corner of 69th Street and South Central Avenue in South LA
that looks more like a burger joint than a slaughterhouse.
At this slaughterhouse, customers get to pick the bird and
watch it get killed, plucked and cleaned - all halal.
Customers say they prize the freshness of the turkeys, and
the reasonable prices. A family of six can be fed with a
six-pound bird for less than ten dollars.
It is this loyal clientele that has kept owner Samy Morsy in
business since he opened in 2002. Thanksgiving? Well, that's
gravy. Business picks up during the holidays, but his core
business is selling live and halal chickens and the
occasional rabbit.
Morsy also is an immigrant. He came to the United States in
1994 from Egypt, where he was a police officer. His brother,
who was in the abattoir business back home, opened a poultry
shop on the corner of Alameda Street and Florence Avenue and
taught Morsy the trade.
Today, Samy Morsy is so deft with his 12-inch chef knife
that it seems that he could turn a turkey into a hood
ornament if he were asked to.
With his rail-thin body and leathery face, the 50-year-old
Morsy always seems to be clutching the next cigarette he's
going to smoke. His visage instantly brightens when a
customer, often with children, walks in.
Morsy spent $150,000 to outfit the building with equipment
and cages. The plumbing system that funnels blood and waste
to a tank cost $50,000. After the birds are killed with an
eight-volt electric knife, they're placed into a tub of
scalding water. The tub looks like a stainless steel Jacuzzi
that appears to fill up with yellow soup and feathers as the
day goes on. The animals are then tossed into what can be
best described as a lidless spin dryer. Feathers go flying
from holes cut out of the sides.
The waiting area by the entrance displays a spice rack, a
refrigerator with soda and a freezer with ice-cream bars.
Two windows provide a view of the birds in their cages.
Chickens and turkeys sit behind glass and a free-standing
cardboard advertisement for an ice-cream drumstick.
Two Muslim women walked in and went out back, carefully
surveyed the white turkeys and chose two 13-pounders.
Morsy, who is trained in the preparation of halal meat,
brought the birds inside and brandished his gleaming,
12-inch knife. Then he bent one of the turkey's necks
backward. He slit its throat, saying a few Arabic words, "Allahu
Akbar."
The women, who declined to give their names, said they were
making a traditional American meal with stuffing and pumpkin
pie.
As for Morsy, his Thanksgiving dinner will include a Middle
Eastern spiced lasagna and mashed potatoes. But that's all
the detail he had.
"I don't go into the kitchen," he said. "I don't know what
goes on in there."
Though ethnic families have long adopted Thanksgiving as
their own, they also have used the best of their own
cuisines to solve the age-old conundrum of turkey — a bird
oft-criticized for dryness and flavorlessness. (Credit
Source: LA Times)
`Smarter R Us´
NOV 22: Countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and China experience what's
called a "drain brain" when all their most intelligent and
well-educated citizens leave for places like the United
States to pursue better opportunities. What many
anti-immigrant organizations in the west don't seem to agree
on is that 'their loss is our gain.' For every engineer,
doctor, nurse or researcher that a South Asian country loses to the States,
America becomes that much more competitive in technology,
medicine and other critical areas.
Data released recently by the US Census Bureau shows that
immigrants who arrived over the past four years are better
educated than those who arrived in the late nineties.
Likewise, children of immigrants are doing better
economically than their parents and they have higher
professional skills. The government's survey conducted in
March 2004 shows that over 34 million people in the U.S.
were born outside this country. The bulk of immigrants since
2000 have come from Latin America (59 percent) and Asia (23
percent), about 6 million altogether.
The number of high school dropouts since 2000 compared to
the number between 1995 and 2000 fell slightly, and the
number of college graduates increased by about two percent
since 2000 compared to the number between 1995 and 2000.
Among Hispanic immigrants since 2000, about 13 percent had a
bachelor's degree, compared to Asian immigrants whose number
is almost 65 percent.
Quake "unites" US-based
desis
Johns Hopkins students of
Pakistani and Indian
origin unite
to raise funds for Oct 8 earthquake affected.
NOV 21: Participants at a recent fundraiser at the World
Bank, saw Pakistani American and Indian American students working together to plead the case of the Oct 8
quake affected. The two communities, it was noted, rarely
agree on a single issue. The event was organized by the
Committee for Global Relief (CGR), in collaboration with the
School for Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at John
Hopkins University. Besides
Pakistan Ambassador Jehangir Karamat, those attending were
diplomats from Sri Lanka, India and Afghanistan; US State
Department and World Bank officials, former diplomats Robin Rafel and Karl Inderfurth, Dr. Jessica Einhorn, dean, Paul
H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, and Dr.
Walter Andersen, Director SAIS; former WB official Karl D.
Jackson, and Theresa Rhodes, chief of CARE.
There have been other relief drives, "but this certainly was
unique"
in that it was the first organized effort "to link" the
Indian American
and Pakistani American community "for a project involving
both India
and Pakistan," said Dr. Walter Andersen of SAIS.
The Committee, comprising very young and savvy professionals
from the Indian American and Pakistani American communities
has had in several areas to invent the wheel, but they have
worked hard and there were early signs of success in this
venture. "They intend to be a continuing organization
because the worst may be yet to come to Kashmir as winter
descends on this region of high mountains, and because there
is no other similar group to link the two communities in the
US," Dr. Andersen added.
The fundraiser was unique in several ways. A moving
12-minute video titled: 'A Catastrophe of Unparalleled
Proportions' with a message 'We are determined to rebuild'-
was shown. It contained powerful glimpses of widespread
destruction, mud sliding, emotions, instinct to live and
distribution of relief goods in the far flung areas of the
rugged terrain.
Pradeep, the visiting Sri Lankan 'sitar' artist, made the
occasion
even more sober by playing 'song of separation', 'a song of
heartbreak,' and, 'loss of a loved one-' all in a brief
sitting. The ending of theraga on the strings was on a note
of hope- as a tribute to the human spirit- which has the
strength to overcome adversity and an instinct to survive.
Pradeep Ratnayake told APP later that the massive 7.6
earthquake
was Tsunami of the Himalayas."So, it was not an occasion to
play mix
blend of Sri Lankan folk melodies with jazz or blues, which
has been
my passion."
In her welcome address, Amina Khan of CGR said "our
initiative is to do
something positive about human suffering- which has prompted
collaboration between the Pakistani American and the Indian
American
communities." She termed this collaboration as "decidedly an
American
experience."
Sanjit Shah also of CGR said, "today, we have come together
Indian American and Pakistani American communities- working
in cooperation towards a common cause. We had the lofty goal
of raising 50,000 dollars- which we have surpassed already."
Sumnath also of CGR said the initiative has the acceptance
and support of the academic community, legislators and
officials of the WB. "The world class academic institution,
like Johns Hopkins School of
Advanced International Science took on this opportunity to
partner with
us, because, they saw four committed professionals focused
on one
thought."
Pakistan Ambassador to USA Jehangir Karamat praised the
remarkable representation at the event. This tragedy which
has struck, he stated, "has seeds of something bigger-
hopefully, for the betterment of South Asia. People of old
age might not grasp it fully yet, though, the younger people
do. "He expressed his support for the initiative.
Sri Lankan diplomat Ravinatha
Aryasinha said
"For us
in Sri Lanka, when two people come together, that's a moment
of
celebration. And today, it is in that spirit that we are so
glad to be
here participating in this event of significance."
(APP)
Desi
Cabbie Finds $350k in Diamonds, Returns Them to Owner
NOV 21: A pouch of diamonds left in a taxi could have gone a
long way toward helping a Los Angeles cab driver achieve his
dreams. But he didn't keep the diamonds. He contacted the
passenger who left them. It turns out they belonged to a New
York jeweler, and were worth 350-thousand dollars.
The cabbie, Haider Sediqi, discovered the pouch after
dropping off a passenger at Los Angeles International
Airport. When he opened it, he found about 100 diamonds,
plus a cell phone bill. He called the number and arranged to
meet the owner at the airport police station to return the
diamonds.
The desi cabbie is an Afghan immigrant with two children and
a pregnant wife. He says he never considered keeping the
gems — even though his wife loves diamonds and he dreams of
opening a restaurant. In his words, "God is up there. He
always watches." |
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