Wednesday, December 5, 2001
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Wednesday, December 5, 2001 |
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After Sept. 11, skin color seems number one issue The beautiful city of New York where I had first landed in this country is no longer the same. On Sept. 11, a tragic event took place in our nation. New York City was left with a tragedy and a horrific site at a place where the twin towers once stood. I saw those beautiful buildings come tumbling down in front of my eyes as I stood still watching television that Tuesday morning. That same place where I had lunch with my family on a gorgeous afternoon a few years back is no longer there. As I saw the twin towers come down that day, at first I was in shock and as the day went on I kept watching television and the reality of this day started sinking in. It has really happened. This tragedy has affected all of us but it has affected our Indian community and myself in a much greater way than anyone of you could ever imagine. Living in this country for the past 26 years, having been to high school and college here, I had forgotten that I was different. Having grown up in this country I was so comfortable with my identity. My identity was never confusing to me. I knew who I was: I was an American citizen who was born in India. That's all I was and as far as how other people looked at me was never even a thought in my mind. Today, my identity has become a color. Today, I still know who I am but am worried about how others see me or how they perceive me. Before Sept. 11 when I walked on the street, went inside a restaurant or walked into a store, people greeted me with a warm smile. Now I see the same people looking at me as a brown-skinned person who is a foreigner and a possible threat. To them, I could be from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Saudi Arabia. This tragic event has not only affected me but our Indian community as well. India is a neighbor to Afghanistan. India is a country which has been terrorized by the Taliban and other Muslim fundamentalists for many years. In 1999 an Indian Airline plane was hijacked by the followers of Osama bin Laden. The world today knows about the Taliban because of what happened in New York on Sept. 11, but we have know about their existence for years. Yet today we are being looked at as one of them because of the color of our skin. One day I was talking to a fellow Toastmaster, Deborah, about this topic and she told me of a very interesting incident. She was coming out of the drive-through at a fast-food restaurant and a heated young man drove by her car and yelled out to her, "Why were you in there? They are from the Middle East." Deborah was confused and went back to the store a few days later. She asked the store owner if he was all right. He told her, "I am from India and not from the Middle East." He thanked Deborah for her concern and added, "I've had so many people like you offer their help in case I get in any trouble." Luckily, this store owner had been surrounded by many good people who cared for him but this has not been the case with some of these other people. In Washington D.C., two Indian women were attacked by some teenagers because they were in their ethnic dress. A gas station owner in Phoenix, Ariz., was shot to death because he wore a turban. News India-Times editor was beaten unconscious outside a grocery store in Brooklyn on Sept. 21 because he looked to be Afghani. A friend of our was roughed up at the Atlanta airport by a police officer because he was suspected of being a terrorist. Most of the Indian people who live in this country are either doctors, computer consultants, educators at prestigious universities or own respectable businesses and until now were considered to be intelligent and peace-loving people, but now it's a different case. This land of opportunity where freedom, respect and love for one another was a way of life has changed to fear and doubt. So, now my friends, what is the answer? Now that you have heard about how this event has changed myself and my community, how do you see me? Let me offer you a suggestion. Please don't judge a book by its cover because the inside might be worth discovering. In this country, diversity cannot be escaped. I urge for us to stay united and feel proud to be an American. Neelam Sharma Fayetteville
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