THERAPIST OR TERRORIST?
By Mohamed Althaaf Ebrahim
A hijabi woman enters a plane and takes a seat
After she greets the woman sitting next to her
Her phone rings she brings the phone to her ear
And answers with the Islamic greeting,Assalamu-Alaykum (Peace be upon you).
Oh! Did she just speak Arabic?
Everyone around her freaks out.
They think: What if she is a terrorist?
Little do they know that she is a therapist
What if she is an extremist?
They hiss...
What if she has a bomb-vest?
Strapped around her chest?
Immediately, they have an intuition of suspicion
They watch her every action because they think she's from a jihadi faction
They've already decided who she is
Before actually finding out who she is.
They've already decided
From their misguided notions about Islaam
To brand her as a terrorist
Based on her outward appearance.
Why does society judge the actions of the many peaceful Muslims
By the actions of the few factions who want war?
Why doesn't society in its entirety
Stop judging people by how they look?
Why does society determine,
Who certain people are
By boxing them into stereotypical criterias?
Who gave society the right to decide who you are?
Not all Chinese people know the art of karate and Kung-Fu
Not all Indian people ride scooters and are computer wizards
Not all Black people will attack you for your money in the streets
Not all White people are healthy joggers and wealthy business people
AND
Not all Muslims are terrorists!
YOU ARE READING
Terrorist or Therapist
PoetryA poem about common stereotypes about Muslim women and how society confines them into certain criteria's.
