Milford - ABDI NOR IFTIN presents his memoir at the Amherst Town Library

Thursday, November 1, 2018 - 7:00pm

Am I American Yet? An Evening with Abdi Nor Iftin
Thursday November 1, 2018
7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Adult Reading Room
Amherst Public Library

Growing up in Somalia, Abdi Nor Iftin was known as 'Abdi American.” He fell in love with the United States from afar, teaching himself English by watching movies like The Terminator and listening to Michael Jackson. He cheered the arrival of US Marines in Mogadishu, wore American clothes, and learned American dance moves. But when the radical Islamist group Al-Shabaab rose to power in 2006, Iftin’s celebration of Western culture made him a target. He turned to his language skills to make a living, sending secret dispatches from Somalia to NPR, and gaining a worldwide following through his broadcasts. Eventually, he was forced to flee Somalia to Kenya as a refugee.

In Kenya, Iftin had the incredible luck to win entrance to the US in an annual visa lottery. He risked his life in order to get the required documents from the US Embassy and made his escape as his fellow Somali refugees in Kenya were being attacked. Throughout, he shared stories from refugee life on the BBC World Service and 'This American Life,” providing updates on his home, family, and status. Now a proud resident of Maine on the path to citizenship, Iftin shares his dramatic, deeply stirring story with audiences across the nation. From intimate glimpses into the immigrant experience to timely talks on refugee rights, Iftin encourages audiences to consider new perspectives and redefine their notions of what it means to be American.

'Abdi Iftin is a naturally gifted speaker. His stories have been featured on various radio and television stations; most recently on CNN. Abdi's story was one of 60 Peabody finalists in 2015. Abdi's stories are personal narratives on his life growing up in a country shredded by a civil war and finished off by Islamists with the sheer luck to win a green card to immigrate to the United States in 2014. Abdi has contributed to Refugees International, American Public Media and the BBC. Iftin’s work has been featured on the CNN, BBC and 'This American Life,” and in The Washington Post. His new memoir, "Call Me American", was published in June 2018. Iftin was recently accepted to the University of Southern Maine, where he will be studying political science. He currently lives in Portland, Maine, where he works as an interpreter for Somali immigrants. Abdi also has a film representation about his life already in place.'

We hope you can join us there - we'll have plenty of copies of Abdi's book "Call Me American" available for purchase and signing.

Event address: 
14 Main Street
603-673-2288
Amherst, NH 03031