What is it like to be a Muslim American in the Army? For Mona, she decided to keep her religious preference to herself to protect her children and shield herself from discrimination. The discrimination she had experienced so many years of her life growing up as an immigrant and Muslim in America.
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Listen to the full episode here.
US Army Nurse Corps
Mona served 20 years in the US Army Nurse Corps. Initially, she was a staff nurse working rotating shifts. However, this wreaked havoc with my childcare scheduling. A year into service I learned of the Nurse Practitioner (NP) program the army had started with the promise of working clinic hours (M-F 0730 -1630) upon completion. A practical solution for her as it fits perfectly with daycare hours for her little girls (ages 2 & 4). She loved her choice and remained a women’s health care NP and women’s advocate for most of her career.
Not Created Equal
Mona and I connected through her new book, Not Created Equal. Her book shares her experience of growing up, being in an abusive marriage, and joining the Army after her divorce. It was a unique and interesting and unique perspective of growing up as a Muslim immigrant in America during the 1970s.
Military Experience
In our interview, we focused on her military experience. How she came to join the Army after initially applying for the Air Force and getting no response. The struggle of being a single mom with unreliable childcare for her crazy shifts. She also talks about becoming one of the first Nurse Practitioners to get the opportunity to work a normal schedule. We also covered her time in Germany where she met her second husband, traveled all over Europe including some of the Eastern block countries before the Berlin Wall fell. She also talked about the inner conflict she felt during the first Gulf War (Desert Storm). Being an American, but also having her culture from Egypt.
She ended her career in Virginia and was able to stay in Virginia by both her and her husband going to Korea in back to back years. But the stability it gave her daughters who were now in middle school and high school was worth the sacrifice.
She decided to write her memoir for her girls, but she also was encouraged by friends. She also wrote a letter and told her story to President Barrack Obama and he encouraged her to write her story as well. It is an interesting and unique perspective. Get your copy of Not Created Equal today!
Connect with Mona:
Website: monajohnsonauthor.com
Email: monajohnsonauthor@gmail.com
Facebook: monajohnsonauthor
Related Episodes:
Serving During Desert Storm – Episode 57
Graduate Debt Free from College with an ROTC scholarship – Episode 89
Women’s Health Practitioner in the Military – Episode 25
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