As an Arab Muslim and OU student, I really felt concerned especially about the amount of hatred and racism expressed blindly towards Arabs and Muslims alike in the emails sent to Megan.
I am disappointed. Am I really in America?!
I have been following Megan Marzec’s blood-bucket challenge and the reactions it sparked on Ohio University’s campus and all around. As an Arab Muslim and an OU student, I really felt concerned especially about the amount of hatred and racism expressed blindly towards Arabs and Muslims alike in the emails sent to Megan. I think this is unacceptable and should be denounced by all means. It is simply a result of misunderstanding and mixing up very different issues and concepts.
When I voluntarily came to the U.S. to study, I never expected to be targeted in any way just because of who I am, especially in a university environment. I always believed in the fundamental values and principles on which this great nation is built: freedom and tolerance. The hatred and racism expressed in the emails shocked me immensely, and let me wonder: Is this really America?! NO, I am convinced. This is not what the founding fathers wanted America to look like; otherwise, what distinguishes the U.S. from the paternalistic and closed societies? In addition, I am especially disappointed by the official university stance on the issue. The email I received from the office of OU President Roderick McDavis after Megan posted her video distanced the university from any association with the act of freedom of speech, because it did not leave any margin for the other opinion to exist. Well, I say that is really inconsistent with the university’s historical records of standing on the right side of history. Ohio University has a long tradition and proud heritage of endorsing the diversity of opinions and encouraging the coexistence of different viewpoints and varying trends. This disassociation with the past is alarming for people like me and to the future Bobcats as well, especially the international students.
As a bottom line, I would say the university space is wide, and can contain varying opinions. We should feel safe and confident to speak out our minds freely. Therefore, I believe Megan has the absolute right to express her opinion in any way she likes as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone, regardless of the bold and wild interpretations of her action.
Sidi Mohamed Nagi is a graduate student at Ohio University.
