Wallace Sandra Neil - First Generation 36 Trailblazing Immigrants and Refugees Who Make America Great: Sandra Neil & Rich Wallace

Manuscript copyright 2018 by Sandra Neil Wallace and Rich Wallace

Illustrations copyright 2018 by Agata Nowicka

Cover illustration copyright 2018 by Agata Nowicka. Cover design by Karina Granda.

Cover copyright 2018 by Hachette Book Group, Inc.

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First Edition: September 2018

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Wallace, Sandra Neil, author. | Wallace, Rich, author. | Nowicka, Agata, illustrator.

Title: First generation: 36 trailblazing immigrants and refugees who make America great / by Sandra Neil Wallace & Rich Wallace; illustrated by Agata Nowicka.

Other titles: Thirty six trailblazing immigrants and refugees who make America great | 36 trailblazing immigrants and refugees who make America great

Description: First edition. | New York: Little, Brown and Company, [2018] | Includes bibliographical references. | Audience: Ages 812.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017047847 | ISBN 9780316515245 (hardcover) | ISBN 9780316515238 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: ImmigrantsUnited StatesBiographyJuvenile literature. | RefugeesUnited StatesJuvenile literature.

Classification: LCC E184.A1 W2165 2018 | DDC 305.9/06912dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017047847

ISBNs: 978-0-316-51524-5 (hardcover), 978-0-316-52369-1 (ebook), 978-0-316-51523-8 (ebook), 978-0-316-52371-4 (ebook)

About This Book: The illustrations for this book were done digitally. This book was edited by Deirdre Jones and designed by Karina Granda. The production was supervised by Virginia Lawther, and the production editor was Marisa Finkelstein. The text was set in Bembo Book MT Std, and the display type is Harman Deco.

E3-20180830-JV-PC

For Anna Koenig,
a first-generation trailblazer
who inspires us every day

SNW and RW

For my daughter, Mila

AN

FIRST GENERATION

first generation

1. The first members of a family to immigrate to a new country

2. Children who are born in that new country to immigrant parents

The people featured in this book all fit the first definition.

INTRODUCING THE HEROES OF
FIRST GENERATION

The United States is a nation of diversity, from Native American peoples to immigrants and refugees. Maybe you can trace your family back to the first colonists who came over from Europe, or to immigrants who arrived during the late 1800s. But immigrants and refugees didnt just come to this country hundreds of years ago. There are millions of new Americans making this country thrive right now.

You search the Internet thanks to an American inventor from Moscow, drink soda from an American megacompany led by a woman born in India, and listen to rock n roll music performed by a guitarist who grew up in Mexico. If youve ever hiked in a national park, its because of a Scottish-born naturalist with a passion to save the outdoors. So why dont people know about these inspirational new Americans? Whatever the reason, we felt it was time you did.

The thirty-six immigrants and refugees featured in this book have shaped our country in countless ways, from the development of electricity to the yogurt you might have eaten for breakfast. They represent many races, ethnicities, and religions. They are men and women from tiny villages in Africa and crowded cities in Europe and Asia. They were born in countries ranging from Somalia to Germany, Syria to China. They are artists, chefs, activists, athletes, and scientists. Most of them faced discrimination while they created meaningful, impactful lives in the United States. But they never gave up, because they believed in themselves and in the best of America.

These first-generation heroes were brave, whether coming to a new country by choice or fleeing here to save their lives. They embody American ideals by working hard, creating change, influencing others, and helping to guide the world. Albert Einstein and Maryam Mirzakhani, for instance, changed how people view science and mathematics. Dikembe Mutombo showed that athletes can lead in areas well beyond a playing field or court. Rose Winslow and Razia Jan saw wrongs and made them right, inspiring others to follow.

Whether youre first generation, tenth generation, or indigenous to this country, we hope the heroes in this book inspire you to blaze a trail yourself, and that they remind all Americans that our countrys greatest strengths are its inclusiveness and diversity.

Sandra Neil Wallace and Rich Wallace

YOU DONT HAVE TO CHANGE YOURSELF OR YOUR BELIEFS TO BE SUCCESSFUL.

Halima Aden was born in Kakuma Refugee Camp in northwestern Kenya in 1997 after her parents fled war-torn Somalia. Today, the overcrowded camp houses more than 180,000 refugees living in tin-roofed huts. Halima grew up there with kids from Sudan, Ethiopia, and Somalia. It wasnt a matter of, Oh, were in a refugee camp, my life sucks, she said. It was Okay. Were in this predicament, but you know, How do we go from here? What do we do? Halima and the other kids played together and learned Swahili to communicate. As children, we were oblivious to race and religion, Halima recalled. When her family resettled in the United States, six-year-old Halima was surprised to see kids playing in separate groups instead of all together in her new city of St. Cloud, Minnesota.

As a Muslim, Halima chose to express her faith by wearing a hijab (headscarf) to cover her hair. At first, this was because she wanted to be just like her mother. Every little girl looks up to her mom so muchthats your first hero, Halima explained. But she also felt best when she was dressed modestly. Its how I interpret my religion, she said, even though some kids at school stared and bullied Halima and her hijabi friends. It was a tough timeeveryone wanted to be mean.

Flipping through magazines in her family home, Halima didnt find anyone who looked like her. So, after graduating from high school, she decided to enter the Miss Minnesota USA pageant. Not seeing women that look like you in media in general and especially in beauty competitions sends the message that youre not beautiful or you have to change the way you look to be considered beautiful, Halima stressed. And thats not true.

Halima was the first contestant to wear a hijab. She didnt win, but some of the worlds top designers invited her to walk their runways during fashion weeks in New York City and Milan. She wore beautiful headscarves and flowing, loose-fitting dresses and pants. When Im walking the runway I want people to see that, yes, Im wearing a hijabbut Im also a million other things. I want us to get to a place where we just see women.