The church bells would ring on Sunday morning everyone would run inside to get a seat for mass. My family was a Christian and would go to church every Sunday, and after we would all go out to eat has a family with the other families at church. Growing up I was in all the church groups like choir and my mother was a Sunday school teacher. My family was very well respected in my community because we were so involved in our church. We were the basic Smith family in the town and we lived in a town that was mostly all Christian people. Everyone in town would go to the 12 o’clock mass on Sunday and had their best church clothes on. Going up me and my sister could not wait to go to church on Sundays and get all dressed up. I would to a private all girl Christian high school my father had a good job in the factory. Also my mother worked for the school so she would always keep an eye out for us.
Than has I got older I started to go out more with my friends and started to go to parties and meet people outside of my school. My parents would not mind because it was all the girls that they knew. My father was very strong minded and not easy to get along with at times. He had old fashion rules and did not want to leave our town or meet new people. He only had work and church friends, he did not like to meet new people or cultures. On that note my father was a strong believe in the Bible were wrong. They would call them Satan worshipers and other names I do not want to say. Both my parents would go on Fridays and have group meetings with their friends and talk about how much they hated them. They would say that these people that did not believe in the Bible where going to hell and they wished bad on us. Once I turned about 15 my parents started to take me to the groups, they told me that I was old enough to know. They said I have to be careful because they would want to change my faith. Than my father would tell me that the men would just use the women and never really love them. I started to feel the hate, my friends started to go has well because if their parents. We would have so much hate, I wanted them to believe in what I believed in. We would say that they are stupid and where not educated and very dirty people. I felt so bad for the women in their culture to be covered from head to toe because of men. My mother told me that those women were unhappy and forced to be cover from head to toe because of their religion. This would make me so mad that they were forced to be cover because of their religion. I thought that they were told to fight and not except other cultures or religions.
Than senior year of high school came I was looking into colleges in the big city. I little in a small town in the suburbs so this was going to be a big change and I wanted to dorm. Both of my parents wanted that for me and were excited for me in this chapter in my life. I got accepted into a really nice school and I got to dorm. Move in day came and my family was where to help me unpack I was only an hour and a half away from home but my mother still cried. My roommate was going to move in late because she was from out of state, both my parents were upset they didn’t get to meet her.
The next day I got up to go explore my new school and see what was around me. I came back to my dorm and bam there was my roommate, Muslim girl with the scarf. Her name was Sireen and her father was there to help het unpack. She asked for my name and I told her I was Kim Smith. She was very nice to me and greeted me with a hug. Her father shook my hand and started to make small talk and asked me about myself. They both seemed very nice and friendly but I knew how those people are. That night she started to pray and I was watching her, I wanted to ask her who was she praying to, Satan? I could not believe it, I was so upset but I did not want to tell my parents they would send me back home.
I felt that Sireen knew I did not like her and would try to make small talk with me. I would cut her off and always try to avoid her, when she came to the dorm. Than one day has we were sitting in the dorm doing homework she asked me “why don’t you like me?” I was stunned by the question and just told her I was quiet. Then she went on to saying that it was not that, she said she can feel the tension in the room and went on and on. Then I finally explode and told her it is because she is Muslim and wears the surf around her head. Sireen looked at me and said “that’s why? This is why you hate me because of my religion?” I told her that they were wrong and that yes this is why I did not like her. Sireen than told me I never hated you or did not want to talk to you because of your religion id your religion is so peaceful and welcoming. Why are you so mean to me? In my religion we do not believe in hating other people because of what they believe.
Sireen than ran out crying and left the dorm for hours. I left so upset at first than I was thinking about what she said. I started to feel bad and question my faith but my parents told me that those people are good for that. Later that night Sireen came back and I felt the need to talk to her and clear things out. I had many question for her like why she wanted to wear the scarf around her head and who forced her to do it. She explained that this was her choose and that she is the only one in her family that wears it and that it was called a hijab. We talked for hours that night and into the next day we saw the sun come up. I was so fascinated by her culture and her mother is a doctor and that is why she could not come to help her move in. After a couple of months we got so close and we were always together. I became so open minded about everything after learning about her culture it was a new world to me.
During Christmas break I went back home to my family and she did as well. I felt weird being home and living in the same house has my family. My family was getting ready to go to the Friday night hate group meeting and I felt sick to my stomach. I did not hate those people anymore and I did not want to talk bad about Sireen. I told my parents that I did not feel like going and I told them all about Sireen. Both my parents were surprised but listen to what I had to say. They said that it was fine and were happy that she was treating me right and not putting things into my head but teaching me. I think this made them change what they feel about these people. They never said anything to me and when they dropped me off back at school after break was over willing to meet Sireen. We all went out to get lunch at a Local Restaurant nearby. Sireen started to tell them she goes to marches and meeting about we can all come together has one and not fight each other. I felt that this was a great eye opener for my parents. After college was over me and Sireen still keep in touch all the time and she became a part of my family.
Has time went on my parents stop going to the hate groups and after college I moved to the city. After college was over me and Sireen still keep in touch all the time and she became a part of my family. One summer break I went to go meet her family and try new things and see where she really lived. I learned that it is better to love than to hate.
Work cited
afar, Sadia, and Erin C. Ross. “Interreligious Contact, Attitudes, and Stereotypes: A Study of Five Religious Groups in Canada.” Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science / Revue Canadienne Des Sciences Du Comportement, vol. 47, no. 1, Jan. 2015, pp. 37–46. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1037/a0036720.
Frounfelker, Rochelle L., et al. “Stronger Together: Community Resilience and Somali Bantu Refugees.” Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, Mar. 2019. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1037/cdp0000286.supp (Supplemental).
Guimond, Serge, et al. “Diversity Policy, Social Dominance, and Intergroup Relations: Predicting Prejudice in Changing Social and Political Contexts.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 104, no. 6, June 2013, pp. 941–958. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1037/a0032069.
Lowe, Sarah R., et al. “The Trauma of Discrimination: Posttraumatic Stress in Muslim American College Students.” Traumatology, vol. 25, no. 2, June 2019, pp. 115–123. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1037/trm0000197.
In this research paper fictionally narrating about Kim Smith a college girl. That has a strong hate for Muslim people because her family is very religious and have very strong passion for her church and religion. When Kim goes away to school her room mate is a Muslim girl that wears the hijab. This piece was hard for me to write because I never think about hating people. I personally feel that has long has you do not do nothing to me personally we are great and as long that you respect me I will respect you. I did not enjoy writing about the hate and the girls fighting. I did like writing about how they became best friends and they respected each others religions. I felt that I could connect to that part the connecting to other because i have many Muslim friends. In this piece you will see one girl can change her ways but still believe in what she believes in. That people need to accepted one another for who the really are. In the end its just better to get to understand other people culture and get along.