First and foremost, I would like to thank God and the teachings of the Bahá’í faith for providing me with direction and inspiration. I thank my parents, Larry and Carole Miller, for their unconditional love, profound wisdom, close friendship, and shining example of service to humanity. Also, I thank the rest of my family, Natasha, Langdon, and Naysan, for their constant kindness, generosity, and positive perspective on life.
To my husband, Roshan Martin Bashir, I owe much gratitude for having patiently endured the tests and trials as well as the successes and victories associated with Fauziya’s case with unconditional love and support. I must also thank him for always encouraging my ambitions, supporting my endeavors, and assisting me in navigating the choices of life.
I want to thank the other student attorneys for their long hours spent, sincere dedication exhibited, and quality work performed for Fauziya’s case: Sidney Lebowitz, Nileema Pargaonker, David Shaffer, Denise Thomasson. In addition, I want to express my sincere appreciation to Michael Maggio, Jamin Raskin, Lauren Gilbert, and Bo Cooper, whose professional mentor-ship, personal friendship, and emotional support have meant more to me than words could ever express. I also thank Celia Dugger, Equality Now, and Karen Musalo for championing Fauziya’s cause.
I want to express my appreciation to Leslie Schnur and Cherise Davis Grant, of Dell, whose endless patience in the face of many obstacles, sincere commitment to the issues of women’s and immigrants’ rights, and rational diligence throughout the editing process has made this book what it is. I also thank Margret McBride, of the McBride Literary Agency, without whose energy, persistence, remarkable patience, and sense of humor, this book would not have been possible. In addition, I want to express my deep appreciation to Katherine Behan, of Arnold & Porter, whose emotional and legal support through the last year and a half has been immeasurable. Her friendship, mentoring, and shining example of what a lawyer can be have meant more to me than I can convey. I must also thank Gini Kopecky for her personal friendship, persistent dedication, and untold sacrifices. Through her loving interviews and endless hours of writing, this story has been able to reflect the true spirit of its source. In addition, I want to thank Beth Rashbaum, whose editing skills have helped to develop this book into a dramatic account of Fauziya’s life, and Linda Steinman of Bantam Doubleday Dell for her dedication and legal scrutiny.
Many thanks to Irma and Abbas Bashir, along with the Bahá’í community and many other individuals, for their support and dedication to Fauziya’s plight.
Lastly, I would like to thank Fauziya Kassindja for her courage, endurance, and inspiration.