From "This Is Uncomfortable": In America, cultural education doesn't come cheap
Make Me Smart
Marketplace
4.6 • 5.5K Ratings
🗓️ 13 February 2026
⏱️ 32 minutes
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Summary
Hey Smarties! There won’t be a livestream for “Economics on Tap” today. But don’t worry! “Economics on Tap” will return soon on Feb. 20. For now, we’re sharing a new episode from our friends over at “This Is Uncomfortable.” Enjoy!
Author and journalist Aymann Ismail wants his kids to grow up with a real connection to their Egyptian roots, including speaking Arabic. For his family, that means committing to a private Islamic school — and figuring out how to afford tuition.
“This Is Uncomfortable” host Reema Khrais sits down with Aymann as he walks through his family budget and the financial trade-offs that decision requires. They talk about what’s at stake for him, financially and culturally, and why holding onto Arabic feels especially urgent right now.
If you liked this episode, share it with a friend. And if you want to tell us what you thought about the episode or about a tricky financial decision you’ve made, email us at uncomfortable@marketplace.org or call 347-RING-TIU. And follow our new social accounts on Instagram and Tiktok @ThisIsUncomfortablePod
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey, Smarties, it's Kimberly. I'm on a bit of a break right now, so we won't have a new edition of economics on tap today, but we are going to be back to regularly scheduled programming next week. In the meantime, we're sharing a new episode from our friends over at This Is Uncomfortable. It gets into the financial tradeoffs that sometimes come with staying connected to a culture. In this case, |
| 0:22.4 | a journalist unpacks his decision to send his kids to Islamic school despite the cost of tuition. |
| 0:29.1 | All right, here's the show. I won't get another chance to help them learn Arabic for the sake of |
| 0:36.0 | them be connected to this massive |
| 0:38.1 | heritage that they're inheriting. So in that context, it has to happen now. And if you're |
| 0:44.7 | going to ask me, how important is it that they get that connection? I'm going to tell you |
| 0:48.9 | it's everything. Hi, I'm Riemérez, and welcome to This Is Uncomfortable. |
| 1:00.1 | Like a lot of kids of immigrants, I grew up with parents who tried really hard to hold on to our culture. |
| 1:03.9 | Like every Sunday, they drove me and my siblings to Islamic school. |
| 1:09.0 | And every summer, they could afford it, they'd send us abroad to be with family to learn Arabic. |
| 1:12.5 | While I'm not a parent yet, I do think a lot about what kind of things I'd want to pass on someday and what it would take to actually do that, |
| 1:17.5 | not just emotionally, but financially, which is what I'm talking about this week with journalist |
| 1:22.6 | Aman Ismail. Amon is a writer and podcast host at Slate, where he reports on politics, religion, and |
| 1:28.7 | parenting. He also came out with a memoir recently called Becoming Baba, which is about how he |
| 1:33.8 | navigates identity and fatherhood as a Muslim American. Amin and his wife have two small kids, |
| 1:40.0 | and recently they've decided that it's really important that they send them to Islamic |
| 1:43.6 | school, even though it's going to cost them a really important that they send them to Islamic school, |
| 1:46.9 | even though it's going to cost them a lot more than they'd like. |
| 1:52.3 | Eamon agreed to sit down with me and walk through his family budget, line item by line item, |
| 1:58.7 | and talk openly about what it costs emotionally and financially to hold on to a sense of belonging right now. |
| 2:00.7 | Amen, welcome to the show. |
| 2:03.1 | Hi, Rima. |
... |
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