THE KITE RUNNER Arizona Theatre Company Play Guide 1
THE KITE RUNNER Arizona Theatre Company Play Guide 1
THE KITE RUNNER Arizona Theatre Company Play Guide 1
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<strong>THE</strong> <strong>KITE</strong> <strong>RUNNER</strong><br />
GHILZAI<br />
to come into the Fremont area. Most Afghans, including myself and my family, were<br />
immigrants who escaped Afghanistan through Pakistan with smugglers. My family then<br />
lived in Germany for nine months in refugee camps until we came to the United States. I<br />
can tell you first hand that the transition was very difficult for the immigrant families who<br />
were established [in their home country]. My father was a diplomat and my mother was<br />
a stay-at-home mom. We were an upper class family [in Afghanistan] and then we come<br />
here and we have nothing. We have lost our home and we have no worldly goods except<br />
what’s on our back. So, like us, most Afghans had to re-establish themselves. My father<br />
became a security guard. My mom would take odd jobs, sewing and things like that. All<br />
my siblings who were over sixteen picked up odd jobs such as working in restaurants and<br />
such. I was eleven years old at that time so I didn’t necessarily face that but we all lived in<br />
one small house and basically helped each other get back on our feet. We had to learn a<br />
new language.<br />
JB: Did you speak any English or did your family speak any English before arriving in the<br />
United States<br />
HG: My father did speak English because he had his bachelors and masters from San<br />
Francisco State University when we arrived here. He had studied here in the fifties. My<br />
mother didn’t speak any English. My siblings did speak some English but I didn’t speak any<br />
English and neither did my younger brother. Most immigrants basically have to make a<br />
new life for themselves. For some Afghans, when they came in their forties and they didn’t<br />
speak the language, they had to find jobs that were not fitting of their skills. Some people<br />
who came were doctors, lawyers and educators and they were only able to find blue<br />
collar jobs if they even found jobs. There are many, many challenges when they first arrive.<br />
But over time the other challenge that they face is assimilation into the United States. For<br />
example, when the kids start becoming more Americanized and wanting the freedoms<br />
that the American kids have and the parents are still trying to live a traditional Afghan life.<br />
And you see some of that in the book. I think Khaled has done a wonderful job. One of<br />
the things when I read the book that really resonated with me was that he told the Afghan-<br />
American refugee story so accurately: the challenges they faced and the things that they<br />
had to do to survive. Khaled so beautifully captured the new communities that the Afghan<br />
immigrants built within their new homes in the United States. Reading the book, I felt like,<br />
finally, my story is being told.<br />
JB: That’s true, we hear a lot of Ellis Island immigrant stories, but not as many from<br />
countries like Afghanistan.<br />
HG: I feel like Khaled did a beautiful job telling our story. Prior to this book, I hardly ever<br />
talked about my immigrant experience because I didn’t think anybody could comprehend<br />
what I was saying. Because the story was such a traumatic one but also such a big story –<br />
the story was so complex and outrageous I never really talked to my friends about it. But<br />
then when The Kite Runner came out, which was many years after I’d been living here,<br />
I started getting calls from people who wanted me to speak at their book club about my<br />
<strong>Arizona</strong> <strong>Theatre</strong> <strong>Company</strong> <strong>Play</strong> <strong>Guide</strong> 31