Mayada Srouji
Today, social media is filled with supportive messages for the American-Sudanese Ahmed Mohamed, a 14-year old technology genius who wanted to impress his teachers at school with a self-made clock but got arrested instead.
The most outstanding message came from President Obama: a tweet in which he motivates Ahmed to continue practising his talent. For the president, this intelligent boy is an inspiration for other kids. Not a threat.
Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great.
— President Obama (@POTUS) 16 september 2015
But also Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, expressed his empathy for Ahmed. If he ever wants to come by Facebook, he’s welcome, Zuckerberg said in his latest Facebook post.
It is sad that teachers don’t know what the passion of their students is, even though it’s pretty clear. So Izzy Galvez made a tribute to Ahmed in which she associates him rightly with N.A.S.A. instead of with terrorism.
We must unify against racial profiling and state violence wherever and whenever we see it. #IStandWithAhmed pic.twitter.com/2iD7kPVSEl — Rahiel Tesfamariam (@RahielT) 16 september 2015
It is clear that the issue isn’t about being protective or careful, but about deeply rooted racism and islamophobia. The problem with that is that it can damage the true potential of talented teenagers.
When you’re Black and Muslim not only do you face anti-Blackness, but you also face Islamaphobia. #IStandWithAhmed
— #NotMyConstitution (@BlakeDontCrack) 16 september 2015
Even Ne-Yo supports Ahmed.
Hey @istandwithAhmed, if you ever want to get into the world of music, let me know. #theworldisyours #IStandWithAhmed — NE-YO (@NeYoCompound) 17 september 2015
Seeing a young boy getting arrested for his talent is horrible, so it’s really heart-warming to see that many people actually do admire his talent and that he got a lot of support.
