04/08/2017
I know a lot of folks are down on Trump at the moment, but you’ve at least got to give Trump credit for one thing.From the Huffington Post on November 9, 2016
Waking Up In Trump’s AmericaTrump did ruin Ziad Ahmed’s day.I’m American. I’m Muslim. I’m 17. I’m terrified.
Teen Activist, Founder of Redefy, CVO of JÜV Consulting, TEDx Speaker, Kid Tryna Change the World
… I didn’t go to school today ? I couldn’t.
I’m not sure I’m in the state of mind to write anything remotely coherent, but I write this because I refuse to let him silence me.
My timeline is cluttered with stories of Muslim kids bawling, the LGBTQ+ community scared for their future, Latinx folks not sure if they have a future in this country, #BlackLivesMatter organizers heartbroken, women/girls telling stories of how they feel personally betrayed, and thousands of people dehumanized. In sum, my timeline looks exactly like Trump would want it to look like.
To those who say to calm down: stop. I lay on the hardwood floor of my room last night hyperventilating. I thought of my grandma who wears hijab (the Muslim headscarf) in Virginia, all my friends who are visibly different, my undocumented friends, the safety of my sister in North Carolina, the civil liberties of people of color, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, the Muslim kids being bullied in elementary school right now, legitimized hate crimes, the celebrations of white supremacists, and my own future. This hits me so hard, but the reality it is ? there are so many for whom this hits so much harder. I stand in solidarity with all those numb today, and particularly those who cannot escape the violence that may be projected onto them.
Trump ran a campaign on hate, lies and fear, and people bought it. This isn’t funny. This is my home. This is my country.
… It was a victory for the KKK. It was a victory for hate. …
But today, I say no. As the tears stream down my face, as my stomach churns, and as my fingers barely find the energy to write this ? I say no. …
I’ve spent my entire high school career fighting for love, equality, and justice. I started an organization in eighth grade with that mission, redefy. …
It’s going to be hard. I will feel like I’m shouting in the dark. This will not be the last day I cry.
I’m shattered, scared and just so so sorry, but there is so much work to be done.
So today, I sulk in my bed wondering where my place is in this country (my only home) will be. But tomorrow, I will continue to rise as a proud American-Muslim teenager…
This is a content archive of VDARE.com, which Letitia James forced off of the Internet using lawfare.