Pakistani Flag-Hoisting Ceremony at Santa Clara County HQ
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
The Pakistani-American community celebrated the independence of Pakistan with a flag-hoisting ceremony at the Santa Clara County Headquarters in San Jose, CA.
Present on the occasion was Santa Clara County Supervisor Dave Cortese who said he was proud to sponsor the event with the American Muslim Voice (AMV).
The Pakistani flag was hoisted jointly the Cortese and Khalid Saeed, the National President of AMV.
After the flag-hoisting ceremony at the County Building a cultural program was presented which saw a Pakistani American college student, Havva Munir, thrilling the audience with her presentation of the American national anthem. Pakistani national anthem was presented by Mohammad Saleem.
Cortese welcomed the audience and said "as a grandson of an immigrant from Sicily I know what soul-searching means." He said the independence day celebration provided a great opportunity to celebrate the diversity of Santa Clara County. He added that Pakistani Americans are a large part of the area's healthcare and technology workforce.
The Santa Clara County passed a resolution on the occasion of Pakistan's independence day. Dave Cortese presented a plague of the resolution saying that Santa Clara County recognizes the Pakistani American community, honors the many contributions Pakistani Americans have made to our community, and extend our best wishes for its continued success in the future.
The Santa Clara County resolution pointed out that Pakistani Americans represent a culturally rich heritage and a vibrant Santa Clara County community which represents a broad spectrum of professionals in fields such as medicine, law, business, education, government, technology, social services and non-profits and more.
The resolution also recognized that Pakistani Americans had worked to improve community relations through coalitions, alliances, and promotion of cultural understanding. They have also played a significant role in immigration reform and other social justice concerns.
In his speech the AMV President, Khalid Saeed pointed out that the Pakistani flag –hoisting ceremony at the Santa Clara County HQ symbolizes the recognition of the diverse and multi-cultural heritage of its society. He thanked the Santa Clara County, the city council members and supervisor Dave Cortese, for making the historic event possible. He also recognized the efforts of Samina Sundas, the Founding Executive Director, who played a pivotal role in initiating this effort and later putting the program together.
Samina Sundas, the MC of the program, has served on the Santa Clara County Human Rights Commission for several years.
A Power Point presentation was made to depict the Pakistani culture and heritage.
Javed Iqbal amused the audience with his presentation of Jeevay Jeevay Jeevay Pakitan (Long live Pakistan).
Pakistani American community activist Rima Chaudry expressed her thoughts about Pakistan
Among those who addressed the audience were Board Member of the Human Development Foundation Javed Khan; President of OPEN Shahab Riazi and President and chairman of the Board of Pakistan American Cultural Center ( PACC), Asghar Aboobaker.
The program was sponsored jointly by the Santa County and the American Muslim Voice. It was co-sponsored by Chandni Restaurant; Dr Waheed and Sabiha Siddiqee; Ellahie & Farooqui Law Firm; Human Development Foundation (HDF); Javed and Shahnaz Iqbal; Pakistan American Arts Council (PAAC) Greater Sacramento; Pakistan American Cultural Center (PACC) San Jose; OPEN Silicon Valley and Tariq and Sowaiba Munir.
