News articles, T.V., magazines, videos, you name it: the media is a prominent part of our daily lives, whether it be flipping channels or scrolling through an article. It affects the way we think and act, in both a positive and negative manner. These days, it’s so easy to just accept what’s being told to us and not question anything about it. Who cares, right?

Take all the hate on Muslims, for example. It seems to me that whenever I look at a T.V., it’s just talking on and on about the latest terrorist attacks that are unfairly linked to my religion. My Muslim friends and I probably hate these extremists more than some non-Muslims, due to the fact that extremists associate themselves with Muslims who totally condemn violence. It’s really frustrating, having to take hate, knowing that there’s not too much that can be done on my part, and that so many people still think that all Muslims are terrorists because they’ve never heard anything different.

I don’t want to be grouped with such terrible people. I don’t want to be viewed in the same way.

Remember back in elementary school when one or two kids did something bad and the entire class had to stay in for recess? That’s literally how I, and many other Muslims that condemn violence, feel.

Every time I look at comments for some article that actually tells it like it is, something saying that we’re not terrorists plotting to take over the world, and I see all the hate, I just don’t get it. “Muslims are all extremists.” “They should go back to their home country.” “The Muslims should all be deported from the U.S.”

Well then, somebody tell me where I’m supposed to go. I was born and raised in this country; this is my home. Seriously? If you tell me that I should go back to where my parents were born, well, they were born in India. I don’t want to go there anytime soon after pretty much dying of heat and boredom on a family trip three summers ago. I don’t even fit in or belong there. Apparently, when I speak to my grandparents in English, they can’t understand me at all because I don’t have that Indian accent that all my extended family has. I’m viewed as “American” and “Western,” a foreigner, when I go to India, but when I come back to my actual country, I’m supposed to “go back to my home country” or something like that.

Being Muslim doesn’t suddenly make me a total outsider. If you want to view my family as “Indian American” or something, then fine. There’s a lot of Indian Americans in the U.S. and they don’t get as much hate. So, why is it such a big deal when all that is different between me and them is that I wear a piece of cloth on my head and practice peaceful Islamic values?

Then there are people saying that they understand that not all Muslims are terrorists, but it is the Muslims’ fault for letting the terrorists get out of hand. To be honest, it’s not like I can just pick up my phone and call them to be like, “Hello? We all want you to stop killing people. Okay, thanks!” If that was how things worked, then believe me, next I’d be getting free pizza delivery for the world. (Global pizza party!!)

However, walking down the street, sometimes I start to wonder about how many people are yelling insults at me in their heads. Judging by the scowls on some people’s faces as they pass by me, I tend to find my answers pretty quickly. I try not to linger too much on this; I usually just smile back and move on.

Luckily, I have many non-Muslim friends that are totally supportive, which I am really grateful for. In the past, I’ve had some people come up to me randomly just to tell me that they would stick by me and that they supported me, my Muslim friends, and my family 100%. I’m always very appreciative of this, and it really makes my day when something like this happens.

When people first see me, they probably make a quick judgement based on the first thing they see: my headscarf. I suppose that it’s something like “doesn’t speak English, came from some Arab country five years ago, hates non-Muslims.” However, I’m obviously the exact opposite of that, and the fact is, I think of myself as pretty similar to my friends in terms of interests and childhood.

What we should all do is think more before jumping to conclusions based on what we see and hear. Don’t judge somebody based on what others say about them. Figure it out for yourself, and use reliable sources. The best way to do this is by talking to the person themself, instead of turning to the internet where false information and trolls are found.

The media tends to generalize a group of individuals, which leads to people making assumptions about the group as a whole. We shouldn’t believe stereotypes, and we should figure things out for ourselves before believing everything somebody else says.