Recent happenings, which do not need to be identified, show that negative stereotyping persists. As a moderate Middle Eastern Muslim, I learned this two weeks ago.
One of my friends told me that she saw an anti-Obama bumper sticker in the school parking lot that read: “Obama bin Lying.” I did not take much offense to this, as I have seen countless bumper stickers that equate the President to the slain terrorist and have just dismissed them as nonsense – I did not pay it any mind until later that afternoon when someone labeled me as an “Ay-Rab,” suspecting that I was going to blow up a building. It should be noted that the person teased me in a joking tone, so I was not offended. I replied stating that I was born in America, that I was not an Arab (and so what if I was?) and that not everyone with brown skin and brown eyes is a terrorist.
That student meant no harm. Still, this incident made me reflect a few hours later. Who at Marshall still genuinely holds these views against Muslims? The second most practiced relgion needs to stop being equated to a handful of rogue terrorists. Given Marshall’s otherwise diverse environment, which, while far from perfect, is debatably better than other schools, I think this is a view a majority of students hold. However, the bumper sticker my friend saw exhibits that there is still an Islamophobic minority.
It is improbable that racism will ever be eliminated on a large scale. It is, to an extent, part of human nature. However, do not reward racists with silence; correct them if you ever witness stereotypes being propagated.
Sincerely,
Ali Amirghassemi
Managing Editor