Imad Kiahi (4:16)

Good morning, New York. I'm so sorry that I'm not there in person. You have no idea how much I miss that beautiful city and it's smelly subways. But I hope that my story will give you a rough idea about why I'm not there. I'm an Iranian and I'm raised in South Africa. And until even now, I still work on eradicating weapons of mass destruction from the Middle East.

Imad Kiahi (4:48)

A simple task.

Imad Kiahi (4:50)

But my story begins 16 years ago when I was in South Africa and I yahooed. There was no Google then I yahooed a cheap good university in New York so I can make my dream come.

Imad Kiahi (5:05)

True to come to America.

Imad Kiahi (5:07)

And I got into Stony Brook University in Long island not knowing that Long island is not a borough of New York City. I packed up my small belongings into two suitcases and a backpack and stuffed all of my money, all my savings so I can pay for the cheap tuition in America into my pockets, into my jacket because it was cold winter in Cape Town. I embarked for New York in the heat of the August sun and arrived in JFK airport fresh off the boat, literally not knowing anyone in New York. As I stood in the immigration line, there was CNN screens with the news and a ticker on the bottom that said orange alert. Eminent terrorist attack suspect student from a third world country.

Imad Kiahi (6:04)

I stared at this ticker as it played over and over as I stood in this long line for immigration and for some Reason I felt like heated.

Imad Kiahi (6:16)

And started to sweat wearing this oversized jacket with all my money in it. As I approached the immigration officer, I gave him my passport.

Imad Kiahi (6:27)

And he looked at me, he looked at the passport, he looked at me, he looked at the passport. And I will never forget his face or his hands when it started shaking.

Imad Kiahi (6:37)

And within a few seconds it felt like eternity.

Imad Kiahi (6:42)

I was surrounded by immigration officers, military dogs and people in plain suits, plain clothes, screaming at me, Step to the.

Imad Kiahi (6:52)

Side, sir, step to the side. And they moved me, hushed me.

Imad Kiahi (6:57)

Inside this cubicle just out of the movies and a light table, two chairs, a one way screen. I sat there, been interrogated over and over and over again as they went through every piece of my belongings. And in it they found a letter that my father had written me just before I left. Since I had left my home, my family, my loved ones. And it was a long letter in Farsi with Arabic Alphabet. And they found all this cash Benjamins stuffed in my jacket and they thought that I was the one. They brought in a translator to read this letter as if it was instructions by some terrorist organization. The translator looked at me as he read this letter and translated it. Your father. I see this as a letter from a father to a son. And your father is such a poet. It is a beautiful letter. And yet he said, I'm sorry that you have to go through this. Eight hours later, after being in an 18 hour flight from Cape Town, I finally was let go. I found myself alone with my suitcase wide open with my clothes spilling over and my belongings on the floor of jfk. Packing myself, feeling ashamed, feeling so lonely and not knowing how the hell do I get to Long island in the dead of night. There was though this African American lady who was cleaning the airport. And God bless her because she gave me such accurate instructions and even took me to catch a bus to Jamaica Station and then the train to stony Brooklyn. I tell you this story because I would like to now Fast forward to 16 years later in this odless time. New York was my home. Where I first fell in love and first heartache. Where I roamed the city and hustled like everybody else. Where I got my education, my career and my friends who became my family. But unfortunately, in the aftermath of the elections, my people, my kind, were no longer welcome. And after a strenuous process of trying to get my permanent residency in United States. And while everything was fine, suddenly things had changed and my application was denied. I was given a very small window to pack up my shit and leave United States. It was as if I had found myself again selling or getting rid of everything. My books are scattered among homes of my friends. My treasures have been given to friends and family. I packed up my stuff and ironically again, two suitcases and a backpack. This time the contents are a little bit more meaningful and important to me. It was with heart that I had to leave the city that I call home. And it is an irony that after so many years, again I'm packing my bags and thanks to immigration and to the policies of the United States government, it has become so difficult for us to be mobile. But I don't want to end this in a bad note because I, I was sent off and forced out of the country in the dead winter of New York in February and coming to the summer of Cape Town, which is absolutely gorgeous.

Imad Kiahi (10:53)

So there is some beauty of it.

Imad Kiahi (10:56)

But it was a lost and found and loss in a sense because it is very difficult to reconcile that my whole life, my most important years have been spent in New York. And to that I want to say that I hope that one day will come and this time will pass. And it is incredible the amount of heart outpour and the abilities of civil society to really challenge what has happened in the United States. I give you power, I give you love. And I send you all from the end of the world in Cape Town. And I thank you for allowing me to tell you my story. Thank you.

Ophira Eisenberg (11:49)

Imad Kiai.

Dan Kennedy (11:57)

That was Imad Kiahi. It was almost 4am in Cape Town when Imad told his story. And yet the judges gave him the highest score of the night and he pulled out a win at that Grand Slam.

Ophira Eisenberg (12:09)

Imad is on the line. Imad.

Dan Kennedy (12:12)

Hey.

Ophira Eisenberg (12:13)

You are a winner. Congratulations.

Imad Kiahi (12:17)

That's amazing. That's amazing.

Ophira Eisenberg (12:21)

Wow.

Dan Kennedy (12:22)

Consider how hard it is making a connection with an audience from 20ft away, let alone almost 8,000 miles. As he mentioned, Imad is continuing his life's work of ridding weapons of mass destruction in the Middle east and bringing peace to the region. From his current home in Cape Town, South Africa, he's also a professor and a storyteller. If you've got a story of your own, you can find a Moth Story Slam, our open mic storytelling competition nearest you. You can throw your name in the hat and maybe even go on and tell your story that night. To find the Story Slam nearest to you, just check our site and get details on all of our upcoming events@themost.org we hope to see you soon. And from all of us here at the Moth, we hope you have a story worthy week.

Intuit Representative (13:06)

Dan Kennedy is the author of Loser Goes First, Rock on and American Spirit. He's also a regular host and storyteller.

Dan Kennedy (13:13)

With the Moth Podcast production by Julia Purcell and Paul Rueest and a special thanks to Chloe Salmon and Jennifer Hickson for their help on this episode. The Moth Podcast is presented by prx, the Public Radio Exchange helping make public radio more public@prx.org.