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Take Note: How Empathy Brought Together A Penn State Professor And An Iraqi Man

Iraqi citizen Basim Razzo and Penn State professor Sam Richards.
Min Xian
/
WPSU

In a TED Talk at Penn State in 2010, sociology professor Sam Richards put forward a challenge of empathy. He showed the audience a picture of two captured Iraqi insurgents and asked them to put themselves in these men’s shoes – to think about their lives, their families and why they were fighting.

Not long after, on the other side of the world in Iraq, Basim Razzo saw that video and got in touch with Dr. Richards. Razzo has since been a frequent speaker at Richards’ classes – via Skype – and now Richards’ students have raised the money to bring Razzo to Penn State.   

WPSU's Emily Reddy talked with Razzo and Richards about their friendship and just how far empathy stretches. 

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Emily Reddy is the news director at WPSU-FM, the NPR-affiliate public radio station for central and northern Pennsylvania.
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