Chapter+4

Chapter 4 The next day I explained to my friends I had to meet with Aasmaa and couldn’t eat lunch with them. I lied and said we had to work on a lab project. I didn't know what they would say about working with her. I met Aasmaa at the table by the juice machines at the start of the period. She walked in with some type of book in her hand. I thought maybe she’s going to read me her bible or something. It turns out it was a diary she had started. After 9/11 her life changed as did many others. She didn’t lose anyone immediate, but she felt a different type of loss afterward. This was a loss claiming her identity. She told me how after 9/11 many students in the school and even people in the street immediately turned on her and her Muslim people. First she explained to me who she actually is. She said I am Muslim, which means I practice Islam. You can also say I am Arabic and Middle Eastern, because I do speak Arabic and I am from Pakistan, which is in the Middle East. The difference is you can’t make assumptions about all people based on how they look. How someone looks doesn't determine their ethnicity or religion. She explained how after 9/11 many people assumed Muslim=terrorist and Muslim=Middle Eastern, so all Middle Eastern looking people must be terrorists. She thought it might help me understand what she went through that week after 9/11 if I read some of her journal. She also said after you read this I want you to meet me again on Tuesday after school. I asked her what was going on and she said that is when they hold “Tolerance Tuesdays”. The bell rang and she ran off and said let me know what you think of my journal and see you next Tuesday. I got home that night and couldn’t wait to start reading this. I figured I would get to read all kinds of juicy information about school and girls and have something really cool to tell my friends at lunch the next day. As I started reading I was in for a shock.