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Oral History Interview with Abdul Rehman, May 3, 2018

Scope and Contents

In this interview, Abdul Rehman describes growing up near Mirpur, Kashmir (also considered part of Pakistan), particularly regarding his family and medical education. He expands on his immigration to the United States; settling in Detroit, Michigan and Brooklyn, New York; and growth of Brooklyn's Muslim communities since he arrived. He speaks extensively about practicing medicine in Pakistan, Michigan, and Brooklyn; his research on sickle cell anemia; and his tenure as president of the Medical Society of the County of Kings. He also talks about his marriage to his wife and recites an excerpt of original Urdu poetry. Interview conducted by Zaheer Ali.

Biographical / Historical

Abdul Rehman was born in 1944 near Mirpur, Kashmir. He earned a medical degree from Dow Medical College in Karachi, Pakistan. After immigrating to the United States in 1968, he completed his internship at Evangelical Deaconess Hospital in Detroit, Michigan and his residency at Brooklyn Hospital Center in the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn. He practiced internal medicine in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn and took on leadership roles within Brooklyn's medical community, including serving as president of the Medical Society of the County of Kings.

Conditions Governing Access

This interview can be accessed onsite at the Center for Brooklyn History's Othmer Library and online at the Oral History Portal.

Center for Brooklyn History
128 Pierrepont Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201