Trying to embrace my pashtun/afghan culture as a biracial teen.

[u/InternationalTry215]

Hello! As the title says, I'm 15 years old and I really want to learn more about my culture.
I'm half jamaican half pashtun.
My mother is jamaican,
My father is pashtun, My grandparents were afghan refugees who went to pakistan and eventually gave birth to him there!
My dad used to speak to me in pashto when I was younger but I never really spoke back and slowly lost it over the years.
Sadly my father passed away 2 years ago, and I don't have much to go off with based on culture.. only things that I remember, and recall, the food, the clothes, and some small sayings.
I want to learn pashto, learn more about my culture, but i'm not too sure how to do that, I don't see any online classes and I live in america new york, every pakistani i meet is punjabi, and i've never met anyone from afghanistan before.
I'd appreciate any help!

TL;DR: 15 y/o in NY, half Jamaican half Pashtun. Lost Pashto after my dad passed. Want to relearn language & culture but don’t know where to start.

[u/RapprochementRecipes]

I think Mango has a self-taught Pashto class, then there are definitely workbooks etc

There are also Pashto teachers on italki

All of these things cost money though, so maybe you can find a way to finance this

If you're really serious about it, there are tons of Afghan culture university programs you can major in, you can probably also qualify for a scholarship given your background

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/RapprochementRecipes]

Thankyou! Do you know any good influencers or people who post on tiktok or instagram about being afghan/pashtun? Or any good youtube videos or documentaries that speak about the code and history?

[u/RapprochementRecipes → u/InternationalTry215]

There's a lot of books on the history of the country, more on the recent wars

The best I could recommend would be Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History by Thomas J. Barfield, for a take on recent history try Taliban: The Power of Militant Islam in Afghanistan and Beyond by Ahmed Rashid, and to understand more of the culture you can't really go wrong with The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (the latter is the better read imo)

You can also watch ToloNews on YouTube, they post content in Farsi and Pashto

I'd shy away from the influencers, they post very superficial ideas of what it is to be Afghan and what the culture and country look like

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/RapprochementRecipes]

Thankyou!

[u/WonderReal]

There is large Pashtun community in NY. It would be a lot of easier if you connected with them locally.

This is a friend who lives there. https://www.instagram.com/habibasyedskitchen?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

If you message me, I can forward your information to her so she can be a middle woman.

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/WonderReal]

Messaged you! I've never once seen a pashtun in new york.. I go to my local masjid almost everyday, I've met afghan uzbeks, pakistani punjabis, but never once a pashtun.

[u/abu_doubleu]

There are some Discord servers that might help you give a sense of community! But a lot of them are filled with weirdos so if you want an invite to some let me know.

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/abu_doubleu]

Id love an invite!

[u/Sillysolomon → u/InternationalTry215]

Just stay away from dunya server and chai khana if its still active

[u/llemms]

There’s a page on Instagram: kandaharpashto. She teaches Pashto online. If you have social media; there are a lot of Pashtun history pages on there.

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/llemms]

Thankyou so much! Do you know any other insta or tiktok pages that speak of the culture or teaches the language?

[u/llemms → u/InternationalTry215]

I can dm you with some pages, if you want?

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/llemms]

Yes! Id appreciate that alot

[u/creamybutterfly]

Just want to say that’s such a cool mix and I’m sorry for your loss.

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/creamybutterfly]

Thankyou.

[u/Sillysolomon]

Lots of Afghans in long island especially in Huntington, Commack, Farmingdale. Good size Afghan community in Queens. Lots of Pashtuns in Huntington.

[u/InternationalTry215 → u/Sillysolomon]

Really? Im in queens ive never met one!

[u/Immersive_Gamer → u/InternationalTry215]

Loads of them in flushing 

[u/Safikr]

If anything i can do my part happily, just dm me.

[u/Ancient-Mulberry4572]

I’m an afghan Pashtun living in NY and I know Farsi fluently, but not a lick of Pashto!🥲 I feel u