Somali-American Zara Mohamed Abdulmajid, mononymously known as Iman has been honored in New York City with a proclamation declaring Sept 26, 2019 as Iman Day.
The historic event, according Mayor Bill De Blasio who made the proclamation, was the first of its type, and it is going to be a permanent mark in the annals of New York City.
Earlier in the week, Iman was honored as a Global Advocate of CARE, a humanitarian concern in New York.
Introduced to a cheering crowd of African-Americans gathered at the Gracie Mansion, the Mayor’s residence, Iman said she was humbled to be honored to stand up for dozens of New York City’s African communities.
“If Iman day has any meaning, I hope it is perceived in light of African Heritage,” she said.
Recounting her migration from Somalia at 20 to New York, Iman explained how she was initially terrified. She would later found out, and she emphasized it, that New York is fundamentally different from America.
“New York is the melting pot of cultures and nations,” she insisted, adding that the moment she arrived New York, “the city welcome me with love and excitement”.
Nearly forty-five years after, Iman has made good as a model, fashion designer, activist fighting for women of color, and humanitarian.
And she’s been giving back to the world—from her gift of African heritage.
To do this actively, she joined CARE whose humanitarian reach covers 11 African countries, including Somali.
“As a global advocate of CARE and Somali-American, I look forward not to what you can do for us, but what Africa can do for us,” she said.
