In 1995, Azim Khamisa suffered an irreplaceable loss when his son, Tariq, was the innocent victim of a gang shooting. But instead of seeking revenge, Khamisa sought peace. He reached out to his son's killer to offer him forgiveness and a chance at parole. He has counseled countless students through the Tariq Khamisa Foundation, a nonprofit organization he founded to become nonviolent leaders committed to peacemaking. His twenty-five years of extensive global speaking, books, and media coverage spawned a forgiveness movement that has reached millions.
He has received over 80 local, national and international awards amongst which are: the California Peace Prize, the National Crime Victims Special Community Service Award presented by President Clinton and Attorney General Janet Reno, Search for Common Ground's award alongside Desmond Tutu, he participated in the Synthesis Dialogues with His Holiness the Dalai Lama hosted by Pope John Paul.
He is an emissary of peace and an international inspirational speaker with over 600 keynotes, including one to 300,000 people at the Lincoln Memorial at the Stand For Children Rally as well as a speech to the United Nations General Assembly at the high-level forum on the culture of peace. Azim, in addition, has given over 1,000 presentations to over a million students worldwide.
He is a published author of five books: Award-winning Murder to Forgiveness (being made into a feature film); From Forgiveness to Fulfillment, From Fulfillment to Peace and The Secrets of the Bulletproof Spirit: How to bounce back from life's hardest hits co-authored with Jillian Quinn and published by Random House. His 5th book "Leadership for the Greater Good: A guide for Truth to Power Champions" has recently been released. He has been featured countless times in local, national and international media. Azim's TED talk viewed by over 1 million people.
Azim was born in Kenya and educated in England in mathematics and finance and has over 45 plus experience in international finance. Azim lives in La Jolla, California and is the proud father of daughter Tasreen and grandfather of Shahin, Khalil and Miya.
About the Book
Now Khamisa calls for a new kind of leader--a satyagrahi leader--to follow in the footsteps of some of the world's most inspiring role models. Building on Mahatma Gandhi's practice of satyagraha, a method of using passive resistance to spark political and social change, satyagrahi leaders balance their ambition with their spirit and use their skills to benefit the larger community with a strong adherence to truth. To address society's most daunting challenges, today's leaders need three things: (1) to be brilliant in their professions, (2) to work to create effective, viable, and affordable solutions to societal ills, and (3) have strong moral, ethical, and spiritual values. This triad of competencies is critical to tackling the current degradation of society. As you ponder these attributes, how many leaders come to your mind?
The leaders in this book are of different races, genders, faiths, and nationalities, thus introducing the idea that these distinctions are not important in the development of satyagrahi leaders. You will be surprised that the chosen leaders are not the famous people that may come into your mind. Rather they are rare and relatively unknown heroes who are indeed exemplary of the above competencies and are changing the world. It is Khamisa's hope that the emerging and existing leaders who read their stories will be inspired to emulate these competencies and help move us to a world that is inclusive, in service of others, compassionate, and one that works for everyone.
