I had initially visualized the Mixer as some type of Dharmacakra emitting moonlight, and was looking forward to attending in order to speak about my own faith while learning more about another. However, I had made a near-fatal error…
The American incarceration system has made it a point to imprison people, bar them from outside contact, isolate them from society and bunch them together to have “tea-parties”. Meanwhile, they fail to provide them with proper rehabilitation programs and a safe environment to foster development and change.
If only I was equipped with a telescope so I could determine the first night of Ramadan myself, because time was passing by and it was the first of August, but no Moroccans seemed to be buzzing about with the spirit of the holy month.
Al-Talib interviews Salmon Hossein on his experience growing up as an Afghan American post 9/11. Hossein is a recent UCLA graduate who is now pursuing a Masters of Public Policy at Harvard University.
Al-Talib interviews Casey O’Neill on her experience 10 years after the 9/11 attacks. She didn’t know about Muslims before the attacks but does not agree with the stereotypes and prejudices people hold against Muslims due to the attacks.
Al-Talib interviews Kelsey Paxton, a second year Psychobiology major at UCLA, about her experience living in post 9/11 America. Although she is not Muslim, she feels the need to defend Muslims and encourages others to be more accepting and understanding towards people of all faiths and backgrounds.
Al-Talib interviews Kutibh Chihabi, a fourth year Neuroscience major at UCLA, on his experience growing up as a Muslim and Arab American.
Al-Talib interviews Bayan Abusneineh, a third year Political Science major at UCLA, about how she and her family dealt with their Muslim and Arab identity in the US after 9/11.
The most challenging experience was having to listen to all of the fear-mongering rhetoric from the media that permeated the education system. When I was 11, I argued with my class (including my teacher) that it would be wrong to invade Iraq claiming that there were no weapons of mass destruction.
Al-Talib interviews Asma’a Ayesh, a third year business student at Washington State University-Pullman, about how it was like growing up Muslim in the US. Ayesh shares her encounters with hate and ignorance from other Americans and hopes they see that she is an American like them.