‘25 years ago’ by Dr James J Zogby (GDN, September 11) took me back to what is known as 9/11 the world over and still raises goosebumps to many of us.
I was in my student apartment on the university campus in Michigan. My phone rang that fateful morning and it was my dad calling from Bahrain, who broke the news to me about the attacks on the Twin Towers in New York.
The news affected everyone, but for the first time I noticed that the Americans were in disbelief and disoriented. The attack on the land of the brave had shaken their confidence. Soon, it turned into anger in many places and reports started pouring in about violent reactions against non-Americans across the nation.
All those who did not look American were perceived as enemies.
The odds were against all international students on a 480-acre campus with more than 19,000 day scholars and resident students, the majority of them white, with less than 200 international students, and even fewer black Americans.
Thankfully, the university leadership was quick to assess the situation and acted fast. They formed a committee of 15 people to steer the response. It consisted of senior administrative staff, a few faculty members and two students – I was one of them, added at the president’s recommendation.
I was extensively used because of my connections and knowledge of the Middle East. I was asked to address several candlelit vigils, on and off-campus meetings, speak to various student groups, and even at a meeting organised in a Native American community, close to the campus.
During those days, I made it a point to meet or visit every international student living on or off-campus on a daily basis to see if they were safe. I used those visits to instruct them how to conduct themselves, avoid any provocative behaviour, refrain from speaking in their native language in public, and maintain a positive and friendly attitude.
Many a time, after these visits, I would be walking back alone way past midnight and encounter groups of American students who would circle me and ask if I were from Afghanistan. I took those opportunities to explain to them that I wasn’t, and to assure them that even those who come from such a country were running away from the terror at home.
One day someone reported about an ‘insensitive’ behaviour by some international students. I was called by the committee and asked about it. It was a gathering at an apartment occupied by an Argentinian student and I was also present there. A few international students had come together to wish an American fellow student happy birthday because he could not celebrate it.
Thankfully there was not even a single untoward incident on the campus or in the city.
It is a good reminder that we can be useful and positively contribute in any situation.
Ranjit Gorde
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