653: Omar and Nancy Kader - The Journey of a Palestinian Boy Raised in Utah and His Amazing Wife Pt. 1

Dr. Omar Kader was born in Provo, Utah to Palestinian immigrants. HIs father was a devout Muslim and a disabled World War I vet who owned a successful Provo fruit farm. During Omar's childhood he and his family were called the n-word by fellow Provoans, but fought to earn the respect of his community. Omar and his father were close friends of Dr. Hugh Nibley, who liked to practice his Arabic skills with Omar's dad.

In this epic multi-part series, we hear several inspiring stories, including:

• How Omar escaped Palestine after being sent back there by his father to prevent him from marrying a Utah woman.
• How Dr. Hugh Nibley fought to help Omar enroll in Brigham Young University.
• How Omar met, courted, and married his amazing wife Nancy - a brilliant Mormon girl from Ogden, UT (this courtship included his conversion to the LDS faith). We also touch on what it was like to enter into a multi-cultural marriage in Utah during the 1960s.
• Omar's draft into the Vietnam War (serving in Germany)
• How Omar and Nancy risked expulsion from BYU for fighting against the Vietnam war and for supporting the BYU Student Democratic Party during the Earnest L. Wilkinson administration -- and how Hugh Nibley came to their rescue.
• Omar's experiences obtaining a Ph.D. in International Relations at USC, along with his 10 year career at BYU wherein he faced both considerable racism and heroic support from certain BYU faculty and administrators.
• Nancy's work with the Democratic party in Utah, which included interactions with actor Robert Redford.
• Omar's decision to leave BYU and move to Washington D.C.
• Omar's work as a lobbyist for Arab-Americans, which included meetings with Yasser Arafat and King Hussein of Jordan.
• The part Omar played in helping BYU obtain the land to build the BYU Jerusalem center, which he later grew to regret.
• Omar's scorching critiques of LDS apostles Ezra Taft Benson and Jeffrey R. Holland.
• Omar's work as a successful businessman in Washington D.C. against all odds as an Arab-American.
• Nancy's trial of faith after befriending Kate Kelly in her Virginia ward, and then watching her friend get excommunicated.
• Where Omar and Nancy now stand with the LDS church, and with matters of faith.