World News for Students of English

14-04-2016 15:00

“You’re the one calling me ‘Batman’ when I just said that I’m not gonna keep quiet due to your ignorance. I want to put you back in your place.”

“So why are you dressed like that?”

“Why? Because I want to dress like that. It’s not because…“

The abuse towards Ahlam Saed, all because she’s wearing a veil, continues for five minutes.

“I know a white girl who married a Muslim dude and she had a photo of ISIS flag on her back wall.”

Forcing the 25-year-old to defend herself.

“You know, you are ignorant, you need to grow up and stop teaching kids that!”

She says she faces Islamophobia on a regular basis.

“He’s one of many, it just goes to show that the ignorant and the people who are close-minded are the loudest and they’re the ones who are most heard in society when it shouldn’t be. I told him, ’I am recording you,’ and I made him aware I am going to put it on Facebook. He didn’t seem fazed by that.”

“Who are you? I’ve lived there all my life! Who the f..k are you?”

“I haven’t lived here all my life?!”

What happened in this small shop in Shepherd’s Bush has been viewed well over 100,000 times on the Internet. Ahlam says the media’s portrayal of Islam is negative and one-sided and ultimately fuels this type of abuse.

“The media need to be very careful of what they give out there and they need to show both sides to the story. The man in that video only takes his information off the media. Had he’ve taken his information from people like myself or general people of the public or Muslims, he would understand that. You know, Muslims are normal people.

You know, what doesn’t break you makes you stronger at the end of the day, and it doesn’t make me want to take off my veil. You know, it doesn’t make me want to think about what I wear and, you know, reconsider. I will still be who I am.”

“Why are you recording me?”

Police are now looking for the man responsible. Ahlam says filming it was a gut reaction. She says she wanted to highlight this one experience. One of many.

Difficult words: due to (because of), veil (a piece of material which covers the face), dude (a man), fazed (worried), fuel verb (to power,to  make happen), gut reaction (reacting to something without thinking about it).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com