I’m not an international spy

Everyone faces racism every day, everywhere, whether they realize it or not. I’m half Indian and half American. Ever since September 11, 2001, my mother, who is from India, and my sisters and I have faced everything from dirty looks to complete isolation. September 11th goes down in history as a day that affected every American. But because I’m a little more tan than my classmates, the event triggered a kind of racism in my life that I had never seen before.

My father’s mother was afraid to go out into public with my mother. She thought going on a long trip with her would put her in danger because people would think she was Muslim and attack my grandmother.

That’s severe compared to what happens to me. What I experience is mild compared to that. What really gets to me, though, is that people are so ignorant. Not every Muslim person is a terrorist. Plus, my mom and I are not even Muslim. We are Hindu, which is a completely different religion. People just judge by the color of our skin and assume that we’re an international threat.

I was in elementary school on September 11th. Even the young children called me “trash” and told me to go back to my “home country.” Well, excuse me, nine-year-olds, but my home country is the United States. We should all realize that no matter our color or race, we are all Americans. I’m sorry that my east coast accent sounds foreign to you, but I promise I am not an international spy at the age of nine.