In the very beginning of this course we had to write an essay about something we would “live, die, and kill for.” So I decided to make my final essay something very similar to it.
We were all born into a beautiful world, where we as human beings are capable of discovering the unknown, and pushing the limits of the impossible to make them possible. But there are times when we take the simple things in life for granted, and don’t understand that not everyone can enjoy the same simple things. All over the Middle East, regular people like you and me have been controlled, tortured, and deprived from what the entire world has to offer by dictatorial regimes for decades. These dictators have oppressed their own people, and dared anyone to defy them. While this is all going on these regimes are letting their own citizens live in poverty and hunger making them incapable to advance in life and pursue any kind of happiness.
For example, usually when something traumatic occurs it is almost impossible to forget where you were when it happened, who you were with, and how you felt. Well in December of 2010, Mohamed Bouazizi’s family probably felt the worst feeling in the world. For those of you who may not know Mohammed Bouazizi was a street vendor in the Middle East. He was a kind man who used his little salary to support his entire family. One day, police officials confiscated his cart for no legitimate reason. This humiliating act occurs very often in places like this. Mohamed was devastated. After local officials refused to hear Mohamed’s complaints he went to the headquarters of the government, covered himself in fuel, and set himself on fire. This is what jump started the Arab Spring. The Arab Spring is a revolt against the Arab Regime all across the Middle East to stop the injustice. In places like Egypt, Libya, and Yemen some have succeeded in taking down their dictators, but in other places like Syria are in need of help.
Now, since our technology is at its best especially with social networking, the news about Mohamed Bouazizi spread like wild fire and inflamed people all over the Middle East with rage and perseverance. They persevered to regain their rights and freedom. They would “live die and kill” to have their freedom and justice. This topic is such a concern to me because even though I am an American Muslim, my family and I did come from the places these unfortunate people are living in, and it’s not fair that they have to go through all this pain and torture while the rest of the world pretends like they don’t know what’s going on. This is a very crucial time in history, and I don’t want to just sit back and watch, I want to help make a difference so when my grandchildren come up to me and ask what I did to help, I don’t have to sit back in silence. Never be silent.
For further information on this topic, I came across a video that can maybe help enlighten you on this topic. It’s time consuming, but very educational. Viewer discretion is advised…
