Carlos Salcedo/Arizona Republic

Ahmad shares his story at the Crescent Ballroom in Phoenix on June 28, 2017.

KJZZ partners with the Arizona Republic to bring you the Arizona Storytellers series. We record the live events and share them with you on the radio. In Phoenix, the storytellers sometimes share stories about our community or the life events that have shaped them in general. Megan Finnerty is the creator of the series. 

Ahmad Daniels grew up in New York City in the 1950s and he says life was good. The neighborhoods were fairly well integrated and he didn't feel the tension of racism.

After he graduated high school, Daniels joined the Marine Corps in 1966 and was sent to mechanics school in Tennessee.

He started going to church on base and noticed there was a church off base that he wanted to try. But Daniels wasn't welcome there and he decided to find out why at the library.

Ahmad Daniels is a life coach and author living in Tempe.

The next Storytelling event is Nov. 16, 2017, at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix.

→ Hear More Arizona Storytellers