Life changed overnight, bringing chaos and misfortune for many Afghans on Aug. 15, 2021. From crowds on the streets of Kabul to crowds at the International Airport, residents were unsure what the future would look like.
Emergency flights over the next month helped evacuate many Afghans. A number of those evacuees resettled in the U.S.
“The only thing that I can remember from those days was depression, fear and tears, hiding for a long time to be able to get out of the country with no belongings, just with a backpack," Anoosha Farahmand said. "And it was the hardest month of my life in my own country, I don't know if anyone here has ever had this experience of not being safe in your own home."
Farahmand is an Afghan refugee who escaped the Taliban in Afghanistan and started a new life in Nebraska. Farahmand flew from Kabul to New Jersey and then to Lincoln. Now, she is a pre-med student at Nebraska Wesleyan University. She works for Bryan Health Center as a lab assistant.
Back home, Farahmand went to medical school and said she had a year left to graduate before the Taliban takeover. It has been more than 1,000 days since the Taliban banned girls from school in Afghanistan. She is grateful that she can go to school in Lincoln.
“People are respectful to me as a woman, they are not looking at me that I am not useful," she said. "I don't have this feeling anymore that I am not enough. They appreciate my hard work.”
Unfortunately, Farahmand’s story is not unique. Morsal Shirzad is a 17-year-old Afghan refugee who relocated to Lincoln in 2021 from Kabul. She is a senior at Lincoln High School.
She thinks back to the night her family fled.
“I was scared for my dad, I was imagining if we don't get out of the country, what will happen if they kill my dad," Shirzad said.
Shirzad sometimes talks to her friends back home, and said life is difficult for them under the Taliban.
“Sometimes we talk and they're sad actually, they can’t go to school," Shirzad said. "They don't have jobs. The girls are getting married at a young age. So, I feel bad for them. They're having a hard time."
In Lincoln, Shirzad can attend school and have a job. She is a hostess at a restaurant downtown.
But even though she’s adjusted to life in the U.S., it’s still hard for refugees.
Shirzad said they can’t believe they left their home with no belongings. They grieve for their fellow Afghans back home. The Taliban imposed numerous restrictions on women in Afghanistan since they came to power in August 2021.
Women can’t travel without a male guardian. They can’t visit a clinic or be in many public places. They have no rights to employment or education.
Shirzad said she feels lucky she gets those things in Lincoln, with her family.
“But the good thing is, I'm happy for my family, like we're here, there are good schools and they're safe for us," Shirzad said.
Shirzad encourages her fellow Afghans who moved to the U.S. after the Taliban takeover, to be passionate about life and never give up. But she knows starting life over with nothing takes time. That’s something that Sadaqat Abdulrahimzai is familiar with.
He served the Afghan National Army under the previous government for five years and said he's still saddened by the overnight loss that occurred when the Taliban entered the city. He was on duty at the top of Bala Hissar fortress in Kabul.
"When I looked down at the city, the dust storm rolled through it and people were terrified that day, and I was extremely hurt," Abdulrahimzai said. "You can’t believe that I burst into tears several times."
Abdulrahimzai fled to Lincoln in February 2022 to start a new life.
“It was almost midnight when I arrived in Lincoln," Abdulrahimzai said. "I felt like I entered a new environment, I needed to start life from zero. I don’t speak English, I don’t know anyone here, what shall I do first?"
Abdulrahimzai added he's grateful for the opportunities here.
“It was a long journey; I learned a lot of things and it was an accomplishment for me since I never had such an experience before," Abdulrahimzai said.
Abdulrahimzai is optimistic about his life in Lincoln. He tries his best to pay back the community that has been helpful to him during his hardest times.
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The refugees said the language barrier was a serious concern for them at first and they've gotten better with it after receiving support from the local community centers that provided English classes.
Also, there are volunteer sources who help the Afghan kids with school assignments and lessons.
Howard Faber, a retired instructor from Omaha, helps Afghan refugee children from second grade to high school learn English.
“Reading and writing is hard, so I've probably helped 50 Afghan kids here,” he said.
According to Faber, the kids are ambitious and enthusiastic about new experiences.
“If you sit with a little Afghan girl second grade, she's telling you what's important to her,” he added.
Faber also helped three Afghan refugees graduate from Omaha Central High. These students came to the U.S. after the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan.
They will start college this fall at the University of Nebraska-Omaha receiving full scholarships.
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Cyrus Jaffery is an Afghan-American and CEO and founder of Jaffery Insurance and Financial Services Company in Omaha. Jaffery and his family relocated to the U.S. in 2002.
Jaffery’s family escaped the Taliban in the early 90s during the first Taliban regime in 1996. He said their house was bombed by the Taliban in Kabul and he lost a brother during their stay in Pakistan before relocating to the states.
“And back then, it was right after 9/11 when I came so obviously Afghanistan wasn't the best friend of a lot of people here, so it was a very, very tough experience, for sure," Jaffery said. "But what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, I guess, is how I look at it."
Jaffery’s mom was on one of the emergency flights escaping the Taliban during the second regime.
Jaffery wrote about his experiences as a refugee and how he went through adversity in his book, "Triumph after Trauma."
Challenges didn’t turn into excuses, but a reason to grow and make a difference. Triumph after Trauma is their story of resilience.
Since he relates to the young kids, Jaffery said he has a better approach to feeling their concerns and what they struggle with as new refugees in the U.S.
“Hey, listen, I was just in your shoes 20 years ago, and we fought through it," he said. "We made it. America gave us the greatest opportunity in the world, and now we have made something out of ourselves and made a better place for our kids to grow in, versus how we were raised."
Jaffery helped the new Afghan refugees with their transition in Omaha after the fall of Afghanistan in August 2021. He encourages the new Afghan refugees to make the best possible use of the opportunities they have in America, fight through the hardships and ask for help if needed.
Jaffery won the Entrepreneur of the year for Nebraska and Iowa in 2023.
For all of the refugees, their stories echo similar themes. The transition was a lot to deal with, from the culture shock, to the language barrier, new types of food, and life in a new place.
But they are happy to have found a home in Lincoln where they feel safe, have the freedom of choice and, most importantly they said, the right to education.