Event Recap: Navigating Turbulent Times with Ali Velshi
On September 26, 2024, Asia Society Northern California hosted a conversation between Ali Velshi, MSNBC Chief Correspondent and host of “Velshi", and M.R. Rangaswami, Founder of Indiaspora and Co-Founder of Sand Hill Group. Velshi began by sharing takeaways from his most recent book, Small Acts of Courage: A Legacy of Endurance and the Fight for Democracy, which chronicles his family history from India to South Africa and on to Canada and the U.S.A. He encouraged the audience to focus on enacting small acts of courage, which add up in community impact to make larger ripples in the world. In recounting his family history, Velshi reflected on the important role of migration in building Asian America, North America, and the world, and challenged us to counter current negative narratives about immigration that seek to polarize rather than humanize. Velshi also offered insights into the state of democracy globally, highlighting the imperative to save democracy during in the 2024 U.S. Presidential elections rather than getting mired in bipartisan issues at this time. During audience Q&A, Ali suggested combating disinformation by triangulating (seeking out multiple sources of information to determine if facts are true or false), and addressed ties between the U.S. economy and military spending.
Stay tuned for video from the event!
Special Thanks to
Motwani Jadeja Family Foundation
The Aga Khan Council for Western USA