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2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumNYTimes: moving story of the Khan family's American life -- and the convention aftermath.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/06/us/khan-soldier-convention-iraq.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-newsSix minutes and one second. That was all it took for the 66 years of Khizr Khans life to become an American moment.
It was not something that he could have anticipated. For years, he and his wife, Ghazala, had lived a rather quiet existence of common obscurity in Charlottesville, Va. He was known in circles that dealt with electronic discovery in legal proceedings. Another overlapping sphere was the rotating cast of cadets that passed through the Army R.O.T.C. program at the University of Virginia. His wife was a welcoming face to the customers of a local fabric store.
And the last dozen years for the Khans were darkened by their heartbreak over the death of a military son, Humayun, whose body lies in Arlington National Cemetery, his tombstone adorned with an Islamic crescent. Their grief brought them closer to a university and to a young woman in Germany whom their son loved. It also gave them a conviction and expanded the borders of their lives.
Some of their neighbors knew Mr. Khan liked to carry a $1 pocket Constitution around with him. In the Khan home, a stack of them always lay at the ready. Guests showed up and they were handed one, in the way other hosts might distribute a party favor. Mr. Khan wanted it to stimulate a conversation about liberty, a cherished topic of his. He liked to point out that he lives nearly in the shadow of Monticello, home of one of his heroes, Thomas Jefferson. Mrs. Khan liked to say, We need Thomas Jefferson.
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NYTimes: moving story of the Khan family's American life -- and the convention aftermath. (Original Post)
pnwmom
Aug 2016
OP
MFM008
(19,803 posts)1. now it has become
an iconic moment in our history.
Response to pnwmom (Original post)
Name removed Message auto-removed
Skittles
(153,111 posts)3. they honored their son in a most memorable way
yes indeed
Applan
(693 posts)4. Very moving article
The Khans are the very definition of patriotism and sacrifice.
brer cat
(24,523 posts)5. Thank you for posting this, pnwmom.
Their life story is inspirational, especially the way they channeled their grief into becoming the "mom and pop" for the UVA ROTC department. Instead of becoming bitter and angry, they opened their arms to a new generation of cadets following in their son's footsteps. They deserve nothing but thanks and respect.
3catwoman3
(23,947 posts)6. Mr. and Mrs. Khan show as much bravery and...
...valor as their son did.
The full article is well worth reading.