So, my last post talked a lot about the sadness of Boston before and after the bombings, and about how terrible it was for one of my students who was profiled. At the school I teach at, the sense of community was REMARKABLE afterward. The concern for Abdulrahman was amazing, and when the slide show that was shown at graduation had photos of him, the applause was so enthusiastic and loud. We were relieved, as a community, to have him back, and to have him smiling. Of course, some ridiculous "media" sources are still defaming him, including those who thrive on the viewership of conservative xenophobes. Instead of defaming this person (I refuse to use names since God is the ultimate judge for his power-hungry, horrific brain-washing techniques), I intend to just counteract his lies for personal gain with the truth about people. It's tempting to be angry at those who follow him, but sometimes, people just don't know better. We often become what we are raised in, racist parents teach their children to become racist, as do classist, sexist, etc. I am a true Mama Bear, so the only time I really get LIVID is when there is an attack on someone I love, especially for something that they cannot change. Back in March, when DOMA was being discussed, I was livid due to the lack of support for my loving, responsible brother-in-law who does NOT ask for anything of anyone except for respect. As I am very worried about the future generation (who isn't, really?), creatures like this that are prominent in the media are really frightening to me. As my husband and I have discussed until we've gotten dizzy, those 'bad influences' will just be the required family meetings/reunions. Family/friends that our future kids will stay with will be those whose morals, behavior, and responsibility we actually agree with. As a parent decides to become a parent (well, those of us who actually decide instead of becoming one due to accidents), such things should be thought about. Although Abdulrahman is only 8 years younger than me, I kept thinking about his mother. The poor woman sends her son to the US to study in one of the best countries for engineering, he happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, gets his name written in newspapers, and then some media sources don't let it go even AFTER the villains had been caught? Horrible.
Obviously, it's impossible to protect your child from everything. I think, personally, my parents did a good job of allowing me to go to public school (granted, it was one of the top 100 in the whole state) so that I did not experience shell-shock due to being a sheltered teenager. Since I knew that 4 years of high school was fleeting, I didn't care what social stigmas would be associated with it, and I formed a bible study club. No one forced me to do that (in fact, there was so much red tape associated with it since there is a strict separation of church and state-- as there SHOULD be), but I thought that my own life did not make sense without God. However, this is not something to throw into other people's faces. Jesus did not state, "FOLLOW ME, OR YOU WILL SEE THE WRATH OF GOD AND BURN IN HELL ETERNALLY." Humans, in general, state this for two major reasons. One is for power over other people. Perhaps they are jealous about how "easy" someone else's life appears, so they have to find something that they have "over" another person. Second, and the most common, is fear. It is reasonable, especially as a born-again Christian, to be afraid of being separated from those you love after dying a physical death. But with this fear, compassion should arise. Questions (in a reasonable tone) about what their own belief system(s). As we learn more about God by spending time with Him, we do the same for humans. I can never assume I know everything about my distant relatives, co-workers, or even close friends and family unless I actually ask them how they feel about an issue. Often, their values ARE consistent with mine, but the way that we convey these values are different. Humans are of course, fallible (if you don't believe this part, let's just agree to disagree).
I had a bit of an interesting and upsetting situation this past weekend. A friend of mine, who, granted, I have only known about 8 months, said "I don't trust any Muslims. Any religious extremists. I only trust Atheists." I was a bit surprised at first, especially since his wife does not seem to be an atheist. She is not church-going (but who really wants to be with the way that so many churches are not accepting of human differences?), but she asks about many things related to faith. He did not defend his argument well, his wife (reasonably so), got a bit peeved. I could have gotten angry at that moment, but I realized that the reasons why I didn't were two. One, he doesn't have any good counter-examples. As much as we don't like to believe that segregation still happens, communities are often divided of course by income, but then by race/religion. Much of this is probably due to the comfort level that people have from moving from their home country and having a community in the US that shares the same culture, language, food, etc. that they are used to. For this point, I was not angry. Second, there was no hatred in his voice. It seemed to me that he was more motivated by fear of non-nationals coming to his country and imposing threat. In fact, my own mother, who had only moved here 29 years ago (almost), had the same argument. I became very aware of that fact that the tone that both of them-- my friend and my mother-- used was not hateful. There was no anger in either of their voices, but there was concern to protect (and I get that stance more than most other stances in the world!) their country, their families, etc. I guess it's not exactly fair to blame segregation on this, but it is good to make a conscious effort to expose yourself to other people that aren't like you. Oftentimes, you realize just how similar you really are. Human core values are very basic: comfort, love, and stability. A Muslim living in Malden, an Indian-American Hindu family in Acton, and a Euro-American Christian family living in Wenham want the same things: comfort, peace, love, and the ability to protect their family with basic needs (and of course more depending on income level and standard of living). As I insinuated in my previous post, I really believe God makes us all INTENTIONALLY for a purpose. This can be our cross to bear (I know certain ethnic groups and overweight people do not have it easy when it comes to employment or mobility), but it is also a blessing. Can humans ever realize that we are all different and we should love one another BECAUSE of our differences, as God does?
Obviously, it's impossible to protect your child from everything. I think, personally, my parents did a good job of allowing me to go to public school (granted, it was one of the top 100 in the whole state) so that I did not experience shell-shock due to being a sheltered teenager. Since I knew that 4 years of high school was fleeting, I didn't care what social stigmas would be associated with it, and I formed a bible study club. No one forced me to do that (in fact, there was so much red tape associated with it since there is a strict separation of church and state-- as there SHOULD be), but I thought that my own life did not make sense without God. However, this is not something to throw into other people's faces. Jesus did not state, "FOLLOW ME, OR YOU WILL SEE THE WRATH OF GOD AND BURN IN HELL ETERNALLY." Humans, in general, state this for two major reasons. One is for power over other people. Perhaps they are jealous about how "easy" someone else's life appears, so they have to find something that they have "over" another person. Second, and the most common, is fear. It is reasonable, especially as a born-again Christian, to be afraid of being separated from those you love after dying a physical death. But with this fear, compassion should arise. Questions (in a reasonable tone) about what their own belief system(s). As we learn more about God by spending time with Him, we do the same for humans. I can never assume I know everything about my distant relatives, co-workers, or even close friends and family unless I actually ask them how they feel about an issue. Often, their values ARE consistent with mine, but the way that we convey these values are different. Humans are of course, fallible (if you don't believe this part, let's just agree to disagree).
I had a bit of an interesting and upsetting situation this past weekend. A friend of mine, who, granted, I have only known about 8 months, said "I don't trust any Muslims. Any religious extremists. I only trust Atheists." I was a bit surprised at first, especially since his wife does not seem to be an atheist. She is not church-going (but who really wants to be with the way that so many churches are not accepting of human differences?), but she asks about many things related to faith. He did not defend his argument well, his wife (reasonably so), got a bit peeved. I could have gotten angry at that moment, but I realized that the reasons why I didn't were two. One, he doesn't have any good counter-examples. As much as we don't like to believe that segregation still happens, communities are often divided of course by income, but then by race/religion. Much of this is probably due to the comfort level that people have from moving from their home country and having a community in the US that shares the same culture, language, food, etc. that they are used to. For this point, I was not angry. Second, there was no hatred in his voice. It seemed to me that he was more motivated by fear of non-nationals coming to his country and imposing threat. In fact, my own mother, who had only moved here 29 years ago (almost), had the same argument. I became very aware of that fact that the tone that both of them-- my friend and my mother-- used was not hateful. There was no anger in either of their voices, but there was concern to protect (and I get that stance more than most other stances in the world!) their country, their families, etc. I guess it's not exactly fair to blame segregation on this, but it is good to make a conscious effort to expose yourself to other people that aren't like you. Oftentimes, you realize just how similar you really are. Human core values are very basic: comfort, love, and stability. A Muslim living in Malden, an Indian-American Hindu family in Acton, and a Euro-American Christian family living in Wenham want the same things: comfort, peace, love, and the ability to protect their family with basic needs (and of course more depending on income level and standard of living). As I insinuated in my previous post, I really believe God makes us all INTENTIONALLY for a purpose. This can be our cross to bear (I know certain ethnic groups and overweight people do not have it easy when it comes to employment or mobility), but it is also a blessing. Can humans ever realize that we are all different and we should love one another BECAUSE of our differences, as God does?
Many of us fair-minded Americans who think independently and rely on evidence to support what we know have tremendous sympathy for Abdulrahman and we are angry about Glenn Beck's unfair and ugly conjecture about him. I've been in touch with his people at The Blaze and have tried to present evidence and common sense to them and their readers supporting Mr. Alharbi's innocence. I hope he knows that there are good Americans out here that understand his plight and are sympathetic. Please tell him for us if he isn't.
ReplyDeleteThank you also for coming to his defense with your blog. I will forward it to Mr. Beck. Please give Abdulrahman our best wishes. I can be reached at ccmresearcher@gmail.com if necessary. Feel free to get in touch if I can be of any help. Thank you.
Thank you. All I want to do is set the record set. This man has NO right to use his position as a public figure to defame and make the life of an international student who has been A- using his own government's money to stay in the US, B- has been SPENDING money in the US when many people are too afraid to spend money due to economic hardship. That man needs to get off his high horse and take a look at himself in the mirror before blaming someone for a crime where the suspects have already been found. It's just absolute BS and very hurtful for the victim.
ReplyDeleteWhat Glenn Beck has done is ugly and wrong on many different levels. He has a history of creating a crisis in order to sell his books, subscriptions to his video productions and to attract listeners. He's a master at taking a collection of unrelated facts and cobbling together a false conclusion from them.
ReplyDeleteThanks for making some very valid points. For what it's worth, Mr. Beck has received links to your blog, as have his writers at The Blaze. They pride themselves on being deeply religious people, so perhaps your message will reach them.
It's important for Mr. Alharbi to consult with an attorney. I'm sure Beck's false accusations have caused Abdulrahman harm and he deserves some justice. Thanks again for all of your efforts.
Thanks for all your efforts. It's just a lame attempt to save his show. Fox News dropped him due to low ratings. I suppose that's a great thing if the American public isn't tuning into his insanity :)
ReplyDelete