E111: Anam Zakaria & Haroon Khalid are done with glorifying the immigrant struggle

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In this episode, I'm speaking with Anam Zakaria and Haroon Khalid of Qissa, one of the most interesting immigrant storytelling platforms I have come across in recent months.

Qissa's flagship project, "Driving Canada," started as casual conversations with Uber drivers as Anam and Haroon navigated doctors appointments, daycare, and all the stuff new parents have to deal with.

Almost all the drivers were immigrants. Almost all were overqualified. Almost all had stories about the systemic barriers that shoved them into the gig economy.

The shitty thing about all this is you sometimes see people term this struggle as a "rite of passage." We call it resilience. And instead of pushing for policy changes that fix the system, we celebrate the immigrants ability to survive it.

With no care for its toll on the individuals, their loved ones, their community, and Canada.

In this conversation, Anam, Haroon, and I explore the cost of resilience. We also chat about:

* Why most immigrant settlement programs serve yesterday’s immigrants, not today’s

* Why we need to fix the system instead of glorifying the struggle

* Launching Qissa

* The power of stories

Official Links

✅ Connect with Anam Zakaria on LinkedIn

✅ Connect with Haroon Khalid on LinkedIn

✅ Read the Driving Canada Report

One Ask

If you found this story helpful, please forward or share it to one immigrant out there.

Join us as we explore the bittersweet world of the immigrant.

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