September 11th: Anonymous, New York
September 11, 2001 the day my life and many Muslim lives changed. New York had been hit with a terrorist attack and living in New York City where it happened, people were affected the most. Though, one of the groups most affected were Muslims.
We were blamed for something that we didn’t do and ever since that day, I would get bullied every day. I was in the 4th grade when it started. I would keep getting called a terrorist and told stuff like “Is Osama your uncle?” and these were just a few of the things that people would say. Surprisingly, these were kids saying this, so it’s obvious they were being influenced by their parents!
I was too young and scared to tell anyone. Because when you’re kid you don’t know right from wrong, and you think that you did something wrong instead. Though, the one who was in the wrong are the people who think it’s okay to bully people for their religious beliefs!
I still remember it like it was yesterday. I remember how nobody did anything to help me including the teachers. They would see this happening to me and they would never do anything about it, they would ignore it! In fact if I responded back, I would get in trouble by the teachers. I got bullied up until high school and it wasn’t only about being called a terrorist, but being one of the few Middle Easterns in my schools, I would get bullied for my Middle Eastern features!
I’m telling my story and hoping it would help anyone who went through this and anyone who is still going through it! Just know you aren’t alone and never be ashamed of who you are!
