Bio

Shabana is a native of Queens, New York, who lived in Merrick, Long Island, from 1990 to 1995. Her family was one of the few South Asian families in the area, with no other Indo-Caribbean or Caribbean families nearby. The school community knew little about Shabana’s home culture, and the education professionals never addressed  the neglect and abuse she endured at home. On weekends, Shabana visited her grandparents and mother  while attending Islamic studies at the masjid in Richmond  Hill, also known as “Lil Guyana.” Shabana’s grandfather was the caretaker, while her father was president and treasurer. She was briefly raised at the masjid by her paternal grandparents until her father remarried, bringing her stepmother into the family. Shabana visited her mother every other weekend, spending Saturday night there before returning home to Long Island on Sunday evening, which felt like the longest, most dreadful thirty-minute journey. When Shabana was in third grade, her grandparents were evicted from the masjid after her father was accused of stealing from it; one school year later, they both passed away.

At Saturday Madrasah, Shabana fell in love with Queens's diversity, faith, and culture. Queens and Brooklyn have the highest concentration of Guyanese  outside the Caribbean. Queens is home to many Indo-Caribbean people, while Brooklyn is home to many Afro-Caribbean people. Guyana has a history of racial issues.

At twelve years old, after years of psychological, physical, and emotional abuse and neglect, Shabana told a judge she wanted to live with her mother in Queens. Shabana went on to college and became an educator and community activist organizer, primarily in Queens and Brooklyn.

After completing her undergraduate studies, Shabana joined the Peace Corps and moved to Costa Rica. She loved the people but yearned to explore her cultural roots in Guyana or India. Upon returning from Costa Rica, Shabana discovered that Guyana was in the midst of election season, so she decided to explore her ancestral homeland, India. She connected with a non-governmental organization and volunteered to teach math and English on the outskirts of New Delhi. During her time there, she also traveled to several Indian states. A year later, Shabana visited Guyana for the first time since she was one and half year old. The intimate journey to her parents' birthplace was joyful.

Shabana married, worked, and lived in Queens until she decided to expand her family and moved to New Jersey. Shabana left the workforce and became the primary caregiver for two children. To conceive her second child, Shabana underwent in-vitro fertilization, injecting herself for months and attending all the appointments alone. After two retrievals, one embryo was successfully implanted. She eventually separated and divorced her partner of eight years. Today, she lives with her two children in New Jersey.

Indian Indentureship (1838-1917) replaced slavery after it was abolished in the Caribbean. It was referred to as a new system of slavery. Shabana’s ancestors were among the 500,000 Indians brought to the Caribbean and landed in Guyana as Indentured Servants. Today, Guyana’s population is over 825,000, with East Indians being the largest racial group, approximately 40%, with about 330,000 people. Guyana has one of the highest suicide and femicide rates in the region. Additionally, Guyana has few mental health providers. There are cultural stigmas related to mental health issues. About half of the population lives below the poverty line.

Many Guyanese began to immigrate in the 1970s-1980s due to the divisive policies of the Guyanese government under Burnham’s leadership. Guyanese came to New York, often coming as domestic workers or “private household workers.” After receiving citizenship for themselves, many Guyanese seek citizenship from family members through “Family Preference” visas. Guyanese immigrants use this form of citizenship more than any other immigrant group in NYC. Half of the Guyanese population in the US lives in Queens. Additionally, Guyanese immigrants make more than the average New Yorker, have among the highest homeownership among immigrant groups, approximately 33%, and their poverty rate is 25% less than NYC’s average.