I Should Have Honor by Khalida Brohi

Author:Khalida Brohi
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2018-09-03T16:00:00+00:00

ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, PAKISTAN watched with horror and sadness at the brutal attack on innocent lives. Our hearts ached with grief. Our teachers led us in prayers for the lives lost and the sorrow of their families. And then we all watched helplessly as America invaded one country after another. We all wondered if Pakistan would be next. Our young friends often scared one another with gossip about flying robots that could sneak into our villages and cities.

Now when my friends and family heard I was selected for the fellowship, they urged me not to go. Everyone warned me about what had happened to Muslims in the United States after 9/11. Girls had their scarves snatched from their heads, I was told. Bearded men were ridiculed, and kids were bullied in schools.

Ammi was especially concerned. “I’m sure they can send you your award,” she said seriously. “Haven’t you heard? These days they can send you things like letters but in big boxes!” According to her thinking, this was why I did not need to travel.

But my curiosity was greater than my fear, so I applied for a visa.

The process of getting a visa to go to Australia had been difficult, but I had no clue how hard it would be to get to the United States. The visa application wanted all my life details, my parents’ details, my siblings’ details, and my work details. With the scarcity of paperwork and documentation in Pakistan, it was an eye-opening experience for me to know how much evidence you need to prove your existence!

For the visa, I had to fly to Islamabad to be interviewed at the American embassy. Hundreds were making applications that day; we stood in a line at four A.M. to beat the crowd. The process was slow and detailed. When my turn came for the interview, my knees were shaking. Americans were going to have me: whether they were going to beat me, bully me, or just hate me, I would be at their mercy.

Little did I know that God had completely different plans for me.

My visa arrived three months later, and I was to fly to Washington, D.C., in November 2008. I had no idea that my arrival would coincide with one of the most historic moments in American history. Barack Obama had just won the presidential election, and the hotel where I was staying with the other activists was only twenty minutes from the White House. Out in the streets people held posters and banners expressing love and support for the Muslim world. Their empathy for our people beamed through the streets of Washington, and the city seemed to be glowing with a new beginning. It infused me with hope and excitement.

On the day of the election, white people with yellow hair, whom I had been scared of only the day before, cried with hope and joy for their nation. I cried too. Suddenly I was a part of their history, and that made me a part of their future.

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