01 February 2017

A chronicle of fear: seven days as a Muslim immigrant in America

When the roll of toilet paper ran out this morning, I stood there, staring at my bathroom shelf for a full minute. There are three rolls left. How many new ones should I buy? The question is so difficult it makes my throat close up. I stand naked, perfectly still, staring at the remaining rolls of toilet paper. How long will I stay in America?

This rented apartment is the first home I’ve ever felt was mine.

I’ve filled the space, stocking it like I’m a mother of five. The bathroom shelves are lined with spare shampoo bottles, razor blades, toothbrushes, condoms, moisturizer pots, nail files, tubs of Tylenol, sunscreens of various factors, roll-ons and, normally, lots and lots of spare toilet rolls. Somewhere around November I must have stopped buying TP stocks to invest in my future here.

Everything is on hold. I haven’t upgraded my Wi-Fi service (despite Spectrum repeatedly telling me I really, really should). I didn’t go on a second date with that nice-enough guy. And I haven’t booked an appointment to go see a doctor about the near-constant abdominal pain I’ve had for months. What’s the point? They’ll only provide me with a follow-up appointment at some point in the future and where will I be then? [734 comments]

[TOP RATED COMMENT 499 votes] Fear of living in America? try living in ISIS part of Syria, Iraq, Libya or any other strict Muslim country. The worst one is the one which bans women from driving.

[2ND 476] Also, I'm not sure hysterical, angst ridden pieces work with the electorate these days. Attitudes have hardened due to too much hand wringing and too little action.

[3RD 425] 90 day immigration freeze on 7 countries with Muslim majorities? Better not buy that toilet roll, you'll be gone within the hour!

At what point did we reach this total divorce from reality where those who cry loudest are heard first? When did it happen that seemingly everyone on the left lost the ability to not pore over minutiae of individual situations which fit their narrative, and actually think systematically?

Find me a happy example of well integrated Muslim communities in Western Europe and I'll feel significantly less sympathy for the concerns of Americans about the growing problem. It's bigger than you y'know, I'm sure it's nothing personal

[4TH 355] So, just to be clear, do you have a passport from one of the affected countries?

[5TH 321] "She means that I drink, I smoke, I have sex, I don’t cover my hair. But I respect those rules - I was raised to follow those rules and every member of my family adheres to them"

See, this is where most people roll their eyes at your piece. If you were in KSA you would have been disowned. If you were in Syria (as it is now) you would have been stoned to death.

If you respected these rules then you would follow them, however I suspect that in reality you see them for the nonsense that they are, which is why you don't.

You either play the Muslim card, where you argue from a point of faith, or you accept that you aren't actually a Muslim other than nominally. You can't have it both ways.

[6TH 295] Trump has placed a temporary hold on visa applications from seven countries that the Obama administration identified as the prime sources of terror. This at a time when Islamist terrorists have carried out numerous acts of mass murder across the Western world and expressed the desire to carry out more via lone wolfs imported into Western countries.

Trump is a buffoon, but this is a perfectly sensible measure.

The hypocritical over-reaction from self-proclaimed "liberals" would be a joke if it wasn't so dangerous. [Guardian Cif] Read more