Today is All School Seminar Day at New Trier and we offered over 100 sessions related to civil rights; in two that I attended, we actively discussed immigrants and their assimilation within the United States. I mentioned to several students that I was reading HOW MAY I HELP YOU? by Deepak Singh. It's subtitled: "An Immigrant's Journey from MBA to Minimum Wage," and tells the story of Singh's immigration in the early 2000's to Charlottesville, Virginia. He left a BBC World Service position in Lucknow, India in order to join his new American wife, Holly, who was pursuing a PhD. Mostly, Singh shares his frustrations with waiting for a work permit, eventually finding a job at ElectronicsHut, and then learning to be a salesman working on commission in America.

There are some funny moments, of course, like his learning the expression "all hands on deck." In addition to describing his own misconceptions and others' biases, Singh shares many, many wry observations about life in America, making sales to various customers, and dealing with co-workers. HOW MAY I HELP YOU? is a relatively easy, engaging read and while Deepak's character at first seems rather immature, he causes readers to pause and consider: "I realized that while I was struggling to keep my job, my colleagues were dealing with much more serious problems. ... I didn't know that behind the bright lights of this country there was a darker side, and that in that darkness there were people who struggled to make ends meet." Perhaps our English teachers will consider assigning HOW MAY I HELP YOU? as an updated replacement for Ehrenreich' Nickel and Dimed.

Although not a refugee, Singh struggled to afford life in America. And, if you are interested, this week the New York Times profiled charities and other ways to help refugees in the United States and around the world.

Links in post about helping refugees:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/your-money/how-to-help-refugees-in-us.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/your-money/refugee-organizations-support.html

I don't know what I expected with this memoir. Whatever it was, I came away with much more. Singh brought me into his world - a world of struggles not in a desperate country, but one of desperation to fit into the American dream. He opened this reader's eyes to look beyond the name badge and see the person standing there. This should be required reading for all new managers with international staffs. Good job, Deepak Singh!