Here I am in America. I'm part of the first generation born here from a family which originated in Bangladesh. I am 18, female, not affiliated with any political party and Muslim. The color of my skin, my short height, black hair and eyes reveals my south Asian descent. Here you are also in America. Perhaps you're: 18, American born, Christian, female, a Democrat and your family came to this country from Europe. Just in these two lines, social barriers are already forming. We're not the same race, the color of our skin is different and we do not share the same religion. These social barriers divide the world, but what most people don't think is that without these barriers we are all human. We all feel the same emotions and we all have the same color blood when we bleed.
On June 12 of this year, patrons of a gay nightclub Pulse in Orlando, Florida were attacked by a gunman. Forty-nine people were killed and 53 others were wounded. The perpetrator was a 29-year-old man whose religion was brought up because of the color of his skin and his name, which told of a Middle Eastern descent. The perpetrator was affiliated with Islam. His acts, by no means, goes with what the Islamic teachings say. His acts are abhorrent to all. Two tragedies occurred on the day of a shooting: First, dozens of people and injured and second, intense and undeserved hatred was inspired for a religion. These tragedies gained world attention, as it should have. In America, every news channel you turned to spoke of these events, as well as every social media and every radio station. A geo filter was created, PrayForOrlando, and blood donations were made.
More than a week later on June 28, a similar attack occurred at the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, Turkey. Forty-five people were killed and 238 people were injured. The perpetrators are unknown and theories of who the three shooters were are being explored. It is believed the attackers were a part of ISIS or ISIL and that they were Muslim. This tragedy was followed by ... silence. Rarely were the accounts of this attack shown in mass media. There were no geofilters, no strong sympathy and no show of support to the families or the country.
I ask myself, why was one tragic event verbalized more than another? Both attacks were saddening and in both attacks lives were lost. The only difference is that one occurred in America and one occurred in a foreign country. Both deserved to be put in the media spotlight because both were significant events that changed lives.
In the first attack mentioned, a Muslim perpetrator carried out the attack on the Americans. The stigma associated with Islam only increased. However, the people who were attacked in the Turkish airport were mostly Muslims because Turkey is a dominantly Muslim country with a christian minority. This shows you that no one is safe when it comes to attacks. Muslims are being targeted, Christians, the LGBT community and children. Just because a Muslim committed a terrible act, doesn't mean that other Muslims are not being attacked either and that the acts of one person does not define an entire group of people.
The world is comprised of seven continents, 195 countries, roughly 4,200 religions and about 6,500 languages. Not to forget the seven billion people in the world and counting. We have divided ourselves by religion, race, class and culture. Together, we share the fact that we are human. We feel the same, we love the same and we grow the same. No one is better than anyone, and each tragedy should be received with the same solemnity, whether it is in America or in a different country.
