By Rudrani Ghosh

“Jackson Heights, a neighborhood in New York City, is a whole world within our world. It’s a corner of the world like no other, where Muslims and Hindus live and work next to each other like brothers. Where the smells of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh float through the air between kabob stalls and sweet shops. People from all around the world come here to eat fuchka, buy Kashmiri shawls, drink chai and chat with their friends, and to live. When I am in this corner of the world, there are no borders and no wars. There are only good things to eat, the laughter of kids, and the smell of home.”