Entrepreneur Frank Islam reminisces on accompanying Obama to India. President Obama and Prime Minister Modi participate in a bilateral meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi. Photo credit: White House Photo by Pete Souza. WASHINGTON, DC: On January 26th, President Barack Obama witnessed, in the company of President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Republic Day parade from a specially designed stage on Rajpath, India’s grandest boulevard. Although the primary purpose … [Read more...]
Articles
Frank blogs regularly for the Huffington Post and writes occasional columns and articles for publications such as the International Business Times and The Economic Times of India.
Frank writes on a wide variety of topics that are critical to shaping the future of America and the American dream and to making the United States and the world a better place. These include: Business; education; poverty and inequality; politics and public policy; immigration; manufacturing; innovation; leadership; citizenship; and social commentary.
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Citizenship Deficit Disorder: A Failure of Education, Expertise and Experience
The United States of America is suffering from a serious and potentially fatal case of Citizenship Deficit Disorder. This disorder is due to the failure of our educational system and the cumulative lack of experience and expertise of the American citizenry. Some might think that this is an overstatement. Unfortunately, there is an abundance of data to support that assessment. Here, as evidence, are just a few selected facts. A Failure of Education: The National Assessment of Education … [Read more...]
Can Non-Violence Still Work In a Violent World?
On January 19, people in the United States and around the world celebrated the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., the Nobel Peace Prize winner, who used nonviolence to advance civil and human rights. The question arises -- after the tragic shootings at Charlie Hebdo and other horrendous events in dictatorial nation-states over the past few months -- whether non-violence can still work in an extremely violent world. The answer is yes but peace must be forged first. In response to the … [Read more...]
Mr. Islam Remarks on getting Martin Luther King Jr. Award
Good Morning. It is a privilege to receive this award with such other distinguished honorees. I am most pleased to accept it on the day before Martin Luther King’s birthday – the day on which we acknowledge and celebrate not only the birth of Dr. King but also the birth that he gave to the civil and human rights movements here in the United States and around the world. I feel doubly blessed to be given this honor because of the indelible connection between Dr. King and that other famous … [Read more...]
Taking India-US relations to the next level: What to expect when Obama lands in Delhi
WASHINGTON: Much has been written about the heavy symbolism and optics of US president Barack Obama's upcoming visit to New Delhi to attend the Republic Day parade as the chief guest, a first for a US leader. Coming as it does four months after prime minister Narendra Modi's highly successful visit to the US and the camaraderie the two leaders established during that trip, Obama's second visit to India — again another first for a sitting US president — will be a huge media event. From a … [Read more...]
2014 in Two Words: “Culture” and “Vape”?
What were the words of the year for 2014? If one were to believe the Merriam- Webster and Oxford dictionaries respectively, they were "culture" and "vape". Call us skeptical. But, based upon our totally unscientific and non-random survey of the two of us, we think not. In our opinion, there could have been other appropriate choices for 2014. Before we go there, however, let's take a quick look at the Merriam-Webster and Oxford selections. The Oxford Dictionaries defined the verb "vape" … [Read more...]
Mr. Islam Interview with Khurram Shahsad in US Urdu News, a US-based Urdu/English Newspaper
http://www.usurdunews.com/New_isseu/Page_9.php … [Read more...]
Mr. Islam column in the Amar Ujala newspaper in India.
Modi gets high marks for managing economy, ties with US By Frank Islam WASHINGTON, DC: Seven months might not be long enough to pass a conclusive judgment on a first-term government. Nonetheless, one has enough samples to prepare a scorecard on its initial performances in various areas. So, how would one rate the performance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government so far? From an Indian American perspective, I would give high marks to the government in two areas: the economy and … [Read more...]
Son of Azamgarh Shines in USA
"Today if a Muslim from humble village of Azamgarh can walk and talk with one of the strongest men in the world, Barak Obama, then it should be an inspiration to others who can also be successful like me." – Frank Islam At a time when the small district of Azamgarh of State of Uttar Pradesh evokes a great deal of controversy in many unpleasant reasons for its Muslims inhabitants. There is one success story of a young Muslim from Azamgarh who rose to become not only one of the successful … [Read more...]
Mr. Islam column in ZEENEWS.India.Com on his trip to India
Narendra Modi has turned the corner on a number of areas in India By Frank Islam WASHINGTON, DC: Since immigrating to the United States more than four decades ago, I have visited India a number of times. Every other winter, I travel with my brothers, nephews and nieces to Azamgarh, the town where I was born and spent my formative years, for what has now become a biennial reunion of our extended family. Even though I squeeze in a few speaking engagements and official events, mainly in … [Read more...]