Zak Ebrahim on being 'The Terrorist's Son'
In his new book, Zak Ebrahim tells the story of being raised by a terrorist: the man who helped plan the World Trade Center bombing in 1993.
His father, El-Sayyid Nosair, also shot and killed the leader of the Jewish Defense League in 1990. Ebrahim was just 7 years old.
From his March 2014 TED Talk:
Zak Ebrahim is not my real name. I changed it when my family decided to end our connection with my father and start a new life. So why would I out myself and potentially put myself in danger? Well, that's simple. I do it in the hopes that perhaps someone someday who is compelled to use violence may hear my story and realize that there is a better way, that although I had been subjected to this violent, intolerant ideology, that I did not become fanaticized. Instead, I choose to use my experience to fight back against terrorism, against the bigotry. I do it for the victims of terrorism and their loved ones, for the terrible pain and loss that terrorism has forced upon their lives. For the victims of terrorism, I will speak out against these senseless acts and condemn my father's actions. And with that simple fact, I stand here as proof that violence isn't inherent in one's religion or race, and the son does not have to follow the ways of his father. I am not my father.
Ebrahim joins The Daily Circuit to discuss his book, "The Terrorist's Son."
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