Resource
BC Global Radio – The Miraculous Power of Forgiveness
Azim Khamisa is an author, a social, peace activist, a thoughtful leader, and inspirational speaker.
He earns his reputation after his 20-year-old son, Tariq, was gun down when he was delivering pizzas in January 1995 by Tony Hicks, a 14-year-old gang member, in a random act of gang violence. Out of unspeakable grief and despair, he was inspired to transform his loss through the miraculous power of forgiveness. Believing that there were “victims at both ends of the gun,” Azim forgave Tony and founded the Tariq Khamisa Foundation to break the cycle of youth violence by saving lives, teaching peace, and planting seeds of hope in their future. One month after establishing the foundation, he invited Ples Felix, Tony’s grandfather and guardian, to join him. Together since November 1995, both men have reached half a million elementary, middle, and high school students and many more millions through social media, television, radio and print interviews, guiding the youth to choose a peacemaker’s life of non-violence and forgiveness.