by Maksuder RahamanIt's Sunday afternoon and I just got off the subway at Battery Park with my friends. It's a sunny day, but with a little chill. There are thousands of people from different ethnicities standing around. You might think it's another nice day to have a walk and enjoy the beauty of Battery Park or others trying to get to Ellis Island to visit the Statue of Liberty, but no, people aren't there to enjoy another nice ordinary day or admire the beauty. It's about something else related to the recent political acts dictated by President Trump. The gathering of people is around the rights of immigrants and humanity, which goes beyond politics, religion and ethnicity. It's a perfect setting to have a demonstration or protest against the recent law banning Muslims and refugees. The Statue of Liberty, in all her majestic glory, stands still reminding us of what makes America great. She, the Statue of Liberty, represents American values and a united nation built on slave and immigrant labor. The United States of America, is a nation of immigrants and their native children and the Statue of Liberty is a memorial and a reminder of the values we adhere to and should be practicing, though, we sometimes forget, sadly. Joining the protest was instant and a spontaneous response from me because I did not plan to protest. I was returning from lunch and I was just browsing the web and catching up on the news about the recent ban on Muslims. I never thought in 2017 this kind of event would be taking place. While I was browsing the web, I saw a post on Facebook about the protest going on in Battery Park. Suddenly, I received a call from my cousin and he asked me “would you like to join the protest?” and my initial reply was “no” and I hung up the phone. Immediately after the phone call, I realized that this law affects me; though not immediately but it might affect me someday, therefore I decided to join the protest. The experience protesting was amazing because I was with my cousin and friends and there were thousands of people chanting who stood up against the recent government decision. The most interesting thing about the protest was the dynamics of people because even though it was a protest about the Muslim and refugee bans, I thought most of the people would be of Muslim or Middle Eastern decent, but I was wrong. On the way to the protest, on the train to the park, there were all different kinds of people with posters and banners which made it clear that it wasn't just about one group of people. It seemed like it was about all types of people who live in this society. Even though the recent law doesn't affect these people directly, the way they were supporting the Muslim and immigrant communities made it seemed like it was a law against them, too. After the protest in Battery Park, we headed to JFK to join and observe another protest happening at JFK. There wasn't that many people but there were a good amount of people to show their support and solidarity for the immigrants and more specifically, Muslim immigrants. On the way to JFK and back from JFK, we had conversations in the car about the recent political acts and protests. While we were talking about it, my cousin found out on social media that there was a shooting at a mosque in Canada. Immediately, there was a moment of silence and self-reflection because we are all Muslims, and this could happen to anyone of us, sitting here. We resumed our previous conversation and at that point I felt like it is the new dark era for Muslim immigrants, which could lead to another event like Nazi Germany of 20th century. People are living in fear; I am living in fear. People don't know what to do anymore. Despite all these things happening against Muslims, immigrants and now, Indians are being shot. There is still hope and I remain hopeful in light of these horrible racial and prejudicial violence because there are people within this society who stand with Muslims or any community who is being threatened unfairly by certain political interests groups. These people who support and go on the streets to show their solidarity in the time of crisis are the real representation of America. The experience was an eye-opener and I was reminded of what makes America great.
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