By Let’s have a quick history lesson and remember the north’s historical victory during the Civil War in America. The year 1860 was a time in America that we should not be trying to relive. Americans, at the time, were striving for a common goal — but going about it in different ways. We were too focused on the different qualities we each possessed.
It was a war based on the people not being able to fathom the idea of all of us looking different than each other and still being entitled to having the same rights. Well, it’s 2016, and the war is back. I think it’s safe to say that we seem to be reverting back to our old ways.
In Cary, N.C., a 7-year-old Muslim boy, Abdul Aziz, went to school like any other ordinary day — but this time he came back to have his parents find him injured and bruised.
“He is an American citizen. He was born and raised [in the United States]. He was born in Florida. As American as you can think of. He likes Captain America. He wants to be president of the United States of America.”
Why? Because when a classmate tried to force Abdul Aziz to eat something that was not halal, he refused. This resulted in him being punched in the face, kicked to the stomach, and having his arm twisted behind his back, all while simultaneously being discriminated against for his religious affiliation.
This was the last straw for Abdul Aziz’s mother. She exclaimed in frustration to reporters that, “He is an American citizen. He was born and raised [in the United States]. He was born in Florida. As American as you can think of. He likes Captain America. He wants to be president of the United States of America.”
Crazy, right? Little kids his age are bullying him because of his religious affiliation? Where are they learning this divisive ideology from to make them treat another child like an outcast?
The Usmani family is, unfortunately, no stranger to this situation. Another tragic incident involves their oldest son, who was 14 years old at the time, going to school one day and witnessing his Caucasian classmate bring a knife to school that his dad had brought back as a souvenir from Colombia.
The father, Zeeshan-ul-hassan Usmani, a two-time Fullbright Scholar who uses data to prevent terror attacks, has found himself in an ironic situation when he recalled the multiple times he was accused of being a terrorist but works to counter terrorism.
When Usmani’s son brought his knife that his dad had bought in Pakistan, his classmates proceeded to accuse him of being a terrorist and associated him with “ISIS.” The school then felt it was appropriate to lock down the school and ultimately suspend Usmani for six months.
What can we conclude from all of this? He simply could not just copy his privileged classmate and share the exact same prized possession his Caucasian classmate had gotten from Colombia.
The family has decided to move out of America. It appears their children have been bullied more than the family can endure — nor anyone should endure, for that matter, by their classmates and the school system. The father, Zeeshan-ul-hassan Usmani, a two-time Fulbright Scholar who uses data to prevent terror attacks, has found himself in an ironic situation when he recalled the multiple times he was accused of being a terrorist but works to counter terrorism.
