What does it take to stay 'Alive in Detroit'?
Tania Begum and co-owner Mahbubur Motlib open Community Rx Pharmacy for Bangladeshis in Warren
A few years ago Tania Begum and Mahbubur Motlib realized many Bangladeshi families were moving into Warren and nearby suburbs. That meant that there was a need for a community pharmacy. In 2013 they decided to open Community Rx Pharmacy, providing bilingual services, and later expanding their team to include pharmacists who speak Hindi, Arabic, Urdu, and other languages.
I interviewed Begum as part of the South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA), to learn more about Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs who found ways to preserve culture and tradition while opening businesses in Metro Detroit. Her story was shared with WDET for Asian American Pacific Islander Month. Michigan is home to the third-largest Bangladeshi community in the U.S.
Metro Detroit Psychiatrist says minorities have a hard time seeking out mental health services
Dr. Asra Hamzavi is an adult psychiatrist and founder/owner of the Hamzavi Psychiatry and Wellness Center. Hamzavi says minority communities face greater disparities when trying to receive mental health services. She says the pandemic also gave mental health professionals insight into people’s lives they otherwise would not have.
“When you sit down and you talk to somebody and work through… some of the things that might be affecting you, present-day or even in the past, you start to understand what to do with your thoughts and your feelings. And then it informs kind of your behaviors,” she says in the WDET interview.
Alive in Detroit: Documentary Filmaker raises money to create a documentary about health care in Detroit
Shiraz Ahmed is a documentary filmmaker following the story of chronic diseases and treatment in Detroit.
In the film Ahmed speaks to a patient, physician and pastor to find out how Detroiters are impacted by chronic diseases and how their communities work to cope, while facing inequities in health care. Ahmed told WDET that during the pandemic many of these themes were magnfied.
He’s now trying to raise $15,000 Kickstarter campaign to complete the documentary.
So far he’s raised $5,906, and has three more days for people to support the campaign. Learn more about his Kickstarter campaign and project here.
Community News:
Wayne State pre-engineering camps: Wayne State is offering summer camps for k-12 students who seek to refine their skills in math and science. Many programs are free, with field trips included. Learn more.