When the words “Muslim” or “Islam” are spoken, a surge of preconceived notions which are usually negative, begin to overflow and we are left blinded by what society has conditioned us to believe. As an 18 year old Muslim girl, my family and I have had our fair share of unpleasant stares, lengthy pat downs and different treatment. With the recent increase in bigotry, prejudice and discrimination, I felt like the world needed a brand new beginning, where understanding, tolerance and compassion was embedded into each and every one of our souls. Throughout the year, I’ve had moments where I’ve just given up on the future of the world because it seemed like their was so much rain and simply no sunshine. Despite that, I do not think that it’s ever too late to put a little light in a place engulfed by darkness.
With that being said, I think it’s very crucial to open up our minds and hearts in order to be able to embrace our differences. 2016 has been a year to remember, and not for its advances in tolerance and acceptance but rather quite the opposite. Many people have been impacted by the countless acts of racism and discrimination, ranging from young Black men in America to the Muslim woman forced to remove her full-cover swimsuit in a beach in France. Our lack of acceptance and our inability to make a permanent and positive change in the world may be rooted deep into the way we were taught and what we were exposed to.
It is our job as a single human race to teach the generations to come that love, respect and peace can prevail, but that can only be done when we begin to believe it and display it through our actions.
Being raised in a Muslim household and community my entire life, I’ve learned a lot about the importance of respect, compassion, good grace and leniency. Not only have I heard stories about prominent figures in Islam exhibiting these traits, but I also saw it happening around me. That is the Islam that I know, the Islam that I want my younger siblings and future children to embrace. When I began taking steps towards adolescence and started comprehending the world around me, I was completely shocked by how negatively and unfavourably something that makes up a huge part of who I am was being perceived. I was frustrated over how much control the media had over what was being presented and how incessantly they manipulated the facts in order to steer it towards a fixed perspective. Following the 9/11 attacks, Muslims all around the world have been subjected to harassment, discrimination and prejudice in one form or another. In fact, nearly 75% of Muslim Americans have experienced anti-Muslim rhetoric or know someone who has since the attacks. Yet, the truly terrible aspect of all of this is that most of the time, the people who are consistently being targeted and attacked are people trying to go about their daily lives but they just so happen to be practicing Islam. I have never in my life been taught to hate someone because of their faith or beliefs. I have never been taught to inflict harm upon people just because they were not Muslims and most importantly, I have never been taught to disrespect someone because they were different. I am proud to be a Muslim, so let me tell you a little about what that means:
I listen to music by Demi Lovato and Kehlani and play karaoke whenever I can but I also happen to pray five times a day and fast during Ramadan.
I love reading and learning about all the advances in science but I also reach out for Allah’s (God) guidance whenever I’m feeling a little lost.
I absolutely love eating spaghetti and cheetos but I also don’t eat pork.
I say “Oh my god” and “you’re stupid” (to my friends) a lot more than I should but “inshallah” and “alhamdulillah” also happen to slip from my mouth in the midst of conversations.
As an 18 year old, there is a lot of work that I would like to do in the world, but that is a lot easier said than done. Nevertheless, Earth tends to spin around and around no matter what happens so why not ease our journey through it? So, to everyone who believes that Islam is an evil and wicked religion or to those who do not really understand what Islam is, I am here to tell you that it is more than words written in a holy book or the people committing heinous crimes and claim that Islam justifies it. It is the elderly that teach how to love, forgive and be generous. It is the adults that work towards making the world a better place while also practicing Islam. It is the teenagers who learn from their mistakes and have a soft spot for learning. It is the children being taught how to pray but also how to treat others with respect. I, for one cannot change the perspectives of people overnight but I can, to the best of my ability try to help them understand. So, please learn something before you jump to conclusions because you never really know how much of an impact you can have on a person unless you’ve walked in their shoes.
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