Here We Are

The Shahani’s came to the U.S. with three young children. Having left India long ago, they lived in many countries and spoke multiple languages. The children were born in Morocco, next stop Queens, New York, a melting pot within a melting pot. With little savings her parents would do any work necessary to give their children a better future. Their green cards were slow to arrive but as this was the early 1980’s, not impossible. Her capable, intelligent father found himself with menial labor jobs while her mother sewed and got involved in their small, diverse community. As they settled in, so did Aarti. She had the great fortune and obvious intelligence to be plucked out of public school and enter the world of Brearley, an all girls academy on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Through high school Aarti, a scholarship student, met the type of girls she only saw on television. They had country homes, walk in closets and vacationed around the world. They were polite and well spoken, only the best would do. But she also realized the racism that existed was on a whole different level. Her skin would always be darker, her family poor. The Shahani’s moved to a home in NJ. Her father was running an electronics business with moderate success. They would have a yard and a dog, the American dream. Until it wasn’t. Aarti’s father was unknowingly implicated in a criminal investigation regarding money laundering of one of his customers. Embarrassed and with little understanding of the U.S. justice system he and his brother made a deal that would become the crux of their lives, affecting every member of their close knit family. With deep respect and affection, Aarti becomes their voice and leader. Learning that justice is not always just - even at the highest levels - she becomes an activist battling the systemic inequities throughout the U.S. immigration system. As hard and complicated as things become for her father,  Aarti never leaves his side, searching for a place he can finally call home. I could not put down this beautifully written memoir of a plucky, tenacious young woman who would do whatever it took keep her family together. Today Aarti Shahani is an award winning journalist at NPR. There is no doubt her father would be achingly proud. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐