NPR

A Muslim In Rural, White Minnesota On How To 'Love Thy Neighbor'

After Donald Trump's election,
Ayaz Virji moved with his family to a small city in Minnesota. They were the only Muslims in town. Virji gave a series of talks about Islam.

Dr. Ayaz Virji was a Muslim living in small-town, white America.

He had left a good job in a leadership position at a successful hospital in Harrisburg, Penn., in order to practice medicine in a rural, underserved area.

Virji says he "had the BMWs, the nice house, but it wasn't enough for me, I wanted to do more." Rural America faces a shortage of doctors, with many residents forgoing care and saying locations are too far away. "So I felt like I should do something about that. And it was back to the idea: If not me, then who?" he says.

He moved with his family to Dawson,

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