With a gleaming smile on my face, I happily made my ways towards the Walmart exit door. A man wearing blue levy’s and a flannel shirt walked towards me and with an urgent voice dressed in a heavy cowboy accent, said “here you go,” and handed me a small booklet. Without thinking, I mindlessly accepted his gift and thanked him as I continued my way out. As I walked towards my red Honda accord, I looked down to see what the booklet contained. In big bold letters, the words “Are you going to Heaven Quiz” were printed across the top. Anger gushed upwards as I realized what this was about. Unable to control my anger, horrid words escaped my pure mouth. I knew things had been too quiet recently. Not one word had been said. Not one. Though I have been bombarded with words such as “terrorist” and “infidel” and phrases like “Someone call security” or “Where your bombs at?” these acts of ignorance always get to me. I hurriedly got in my car, trying my hardest to keep tears at bay. I started my car and drove back to a friend’s house to continue working on a big project. As I drove, I asked myself “Why me!?” Of all people, why had he chosen to give ME the booklet? Of course the answer was unquestionable. With a headscarf covering my hair, I am the perfect target for people who are unaware of whom we Muslims really are. I’m sure all of you have had similar experiences and have dealt with it in your own ways. Now that I think back, I wish I had approached it differently. I have thought of many different ways of dealing with this situation that would be appropriate, and I feel you guys should be well-equipped for the next encounter you are approached by someone attempting to “enlighten” you.
WAYS TO FIGHT BACK
- Fight fire with fire! When they hand you a booklet with bible verses or a DVD with “spirit lessons,” whip out a bible verse and they will surely back down. Do you need an example? Roman 2:1 says “You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.” And then say “Are you judging me?” and walk away. J
- Hand them a booklet of your own. MAKE SURE to add every verse about judging that you can find from the bible! They will hopefully get the message?
- Do as Mahatma Gindhi. Just smile, thank them and walk away. Sometimes, taking the less-violate way gets the message across more clearly.
- Confront them but without showing your anger. Remember to smile no matter how hard it is.
Of course, my ideal chose of weapon would be the last, but c’mon! How funny would it be if I made my own booklet and gave it to the next person who did this!? Pretty funny! But I would be going down to their level and that is not a proper way of dealing with this type of situation. So please disregard the second choose.
Signed,
The Liberated Muslim
