Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Visits U-M Dearborn

DEARBORN — It would be very easy for Mark Zuckerberg to lead an insulated life. As one of the world’s wealthiest and most influential people, the Facebook founder and CEO has the means. Instead, he has challenged himself to talk to people — face-to-face — to get out of his comfort zone.

Zuckerberg met with University of Michigan Dearborn students on Friday to do just that. His conversation was mainly with Muslim students and, by all accounts, the talk went well.

"Most of the students I met were immigrants, including from war zones in Palestine, Jordan and Iraq," Zuckerberg wrote in a Facebook post. "They told me stories of the violence they experienced, including an early memory of having her building bombed and jumping into her mother's arms even though she couldn't do anything to prevent it."

For the past few years, Zuckerberg has challenged himself to learn new things and grow outside of his work. U-M Dearborn was proud to have him, in what the university called a conversation about “community, education, faith and entrepreneurship."

The U-M Dearborn stop is part of his well-publicized New Year's resolution to connect with more Americans across the country. Zuckerberg, in fact, wants to talk to people in all 50 states by the end of 2017. On Thursday, he took a tour of the Ford Rouge Plant where he experienced working on an assembly line.

Zuckerberg wrote in his Facebook post that students were honest with him. "One student told me about feeling like she has to be on her best behavior at the grocery store, letting white people cut in front of her in line to prove that Muslims are nice people. Over time, she said, "I've learned not to apologize for my identity. I'm Arab. I'm Muslim. This is who I am." But it's still a struggle," he wrote.

Zuckerberg seemed pleased by the visit. "Before I left, a student told me his professor's advice that one way to reduce Islamophobia is to recognize the problem, but then focus on connecting with people around other issues, building common understanding and setting an example of a solution." he wrote. "Thanks to the young people I met for helping me understand, and for helping lead the way forward."

Photo by Justin Sullivan / Staff / Getty Images News / Getty Images