"...because there is so much misunderstanding of the Muslim
world and so much misinformation about the Muslim world
that I needed as a writer [...] to introduce the lay reader
to a world that is significantly different from the Western world
but also significantly similar in terms of fundamental human qualities." 
–JOYDEEP ROY-BHATTACHARYA

INNER CITY STORIES

Do you ever feel like people are judging you by how you look? Well, sometimes I do; I get angry, upset, and feel like going up to them and saying, “That's not true!!” I feel like people are judging me behind my back when I don't even know; the worst thing about this is that they don't even know me. This is me, they can like it or not, but I don't care what they think of me because in the end I know that they're wrong and I'm not. Yes, I’m a Muslim; yes, I wear a scarf; yes, I cover myself; yes, I live in the United States Of America, but all that doesn't mean I’m a terrorist, it doesn't mean that I’m a horrible person, because it's all the opposite: I’m a nice person, I'm grateful for my life, I'm NOT a terrorist, and I was born in the US.

My parents have taught me to be respectful of others, to have courage, and to believe in myself. People don't respect my culture because they think it's different or just weird, but to me my culture makes complete sense, so respect my culture the same way I respect your culture and your beliefs. It’s sad to see a person bombing places, it's sad to see people saying Muslims are terrorists; if one Muslim bombed a place that does not mean all Muslim are the same. A real terrorist can be anyone who brings serious harm to another living person. See, I’m a Muslim and I would never do something like that in my life. When a person bombs a place all these people ask me questions like, why would he or she do that, does he or she know that they just killed adults, teenagers, little kids, and babies? Yes, I get mad just like you do; if a person kills thousands of people, it doesn't mean that, oh I don't care because I’m a Muslim and Muslims do that kind of thing. I do care, I have feelings; you guys think all Muslims are the same but that’s not so. I'm not saying you can't have opinions, all I'm saying is don't judge everyone the same way; when you don't know a specific person you have to realize he or she can be the opposite of how you judge him or her.

It’s sad to see how cops react when it's a black person or a Muslim person; they didn’t do anything wrong and yet the cops attack them instead of giving them a chance to speak. I’ve seen this happen; the cops judged the person just because of what the person looked like. I have talked with other Muslims and with black people who have told me that when they walked into a mall or store they’ve heard people saying, “Let's go out, I'm scared, they're here now” just because of how they looked. They only wanted to shop like everyone else and they hadn't done anything wrong. It’s sad to see people who say things that; it's even more heartbreaking to hear people say that when you're right there or right behind them or beside them. It’s sad that they think of us like that when we’re totally different. In France, there’s this beach where they don't allow

Muslim women to cover their skin because they think they're going do something bad; if they wear full clothing they kick them out. How ridiculous this is; it’s the most ridiculous thing I ever heard of. I mean, there's nothing wrong with these women, it's just their clothes; they should wear what they feel like wearing and they should feel comfortable in their clothes, without someone coming up to them and saying you can't wear that. Everyone should have the right to wear what they want and not be ashamed of it. This is wrong; you have no right to tell anyone what they can wear and what they cannot wear, or tell them they should go back to where they came from.

We have democracy for a reason; we can say whatever we want, we can choose who we want to be and who we want to be with. We should all have this freedom. Well, in this case some people are being unfair in France, by telling Muslims what they can and cannot wear to a beach because that's their rule over there. I think this rule should be changed; the government should do something about it. It's not fair that other people can wear what they want, but we Muslim women can't wear what we want. How would you like it if someone comes up to you and says, “Oh you cannot wear a bikini on this beach.” You would get upset and angry, right? Well, that's how we exactly feel and that's how they're treat us. We are no different just because we wear full clothing. It’s not okay and everyone should know that; we live in a world where everybody is different, and we all have to accept that so our world won't fall apart. We are all human beings even though we come from different cultures, races, and religions and have personalities. We should respect each other!

#AllLivesmatter #DontJudgeMe #ImProudOfWhoIAm #Everyone'sDifferent #RespectOthers