By Sean Nabi

I am a tall, brown-skinned male with black hair and a beard and have an Arabic last name.

I know what you are thinking and I don’t blame you; I would be afraid to sit next to me on an airplane, too. Though the Arabic last name and my beard might be deceiving to some, it comes as a shock to many to figure out that I am not Arabic, but more of an American citizen.

I am the son of two Iranian immigrants. Iran is currently known as one of the U.S.’s biggest enemies. You may be thinking, “well, aren’t all Iranians Arabs?” The answer is no; the majority of Iranians are Persians who are a part of the Indo-Aryan race, making it possible for me to check off the box stating I am “white” on all applications.

Growing up in the pre-9/11 world wasn’t much of a problem for me, for people really didn’t know much of anything about who Persians where other than the stereotypical magic carpets and genies. Occasionally, I would be asked if I was Iraqi or not, but as I grew older, I figured out that many people in this country truly don’t have a sense of geography. For the most part, I was an average kid growing up in your typical suburban town.

Things took a very drastic turn once I got to high school. I remember hearing from my siblings that high school would change my life forever; I just didn’t think that it would happen the way it did. The second day of my high school career I will never forget, and I don’t think anyone else who was alive that day will either, as it was Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001.

My life pulled a complete 180 after Sept. 11, from feeling no different from anyone else. Now, I was alienated for the color of my skin and the place from which my parents came. From racial slurs and threats to acts of bigotry and pain, I was lost and hurt, beginning to question all that I thought was perfect before 9/11. I remember a friend telling me that he understood what many people of other minorities had gone through and are going through in America, but at the end of the day, we checked the white box, and we can’t play the pity card.

It wasn’t pity I wanted though; I just wanted to be normal again, and I did whatever I could to disassociate myself from Iranians, doing things like listening to heavy metal music, which for some reason I thought would spite Iranians, to not acknowledging people who spoke Farsi, the Persian language, to me in public. I thought by doing these things I would be free from all the hatred and be back to life the way it was pre-9/11, but that wasn’t the case.

I learned the lesson the hard way that I could always change how I looked on the outside, but no matter what I do, I was and will always be an American of Iranian descent. As I began to accept that and slowly understand why my parents had come to America in the first place, I began to realize how lucky I had been to be born in the United States. I began to draw connections with all the experiences from my well-traveled past and learned to appreciate being born in what many others and myself believe is the greatest country in the world. I could not speak my mind and live the way I do in a country like Iran, nor would I be able to openly voice my opinion against the government and expect not to be imprisoned for it. For as long as the liberties of freedom reign upon this country, all Americans will have something to be proud of and appreciate.

Sean Nabi is a junior political science student. You may e-mail him at [email protected].