what ensued though was overwhelming and confused me. nearly every single person in the street that we past (young men/children) didn't pass without making some comment to my friend, some derogatory, some inquisitive, some joking, some cruel. the first group, two young boys first yelling out 'chinese chinese! Nigger nigger!' which we both managed to simply ignore. the next encounter a group of 9 year old boys, screaming out at him 'chinese! hello! neehoa! chinese!' which my friend responded to with laughter, hellos, and then insisted, 'no no korea!' all with a smile on his face. I was amazed at his ability to keep a smile on his face throughout the entire walk to the metro, where more similar encounters and looks followed. After living here for nearly a year now I've gone through all the phases of reactions to this type of harassment... i've shouted back, i've ignored it, i've mumbled mean things under my breath, i've laughed it off, i've empathized, i've said hello back, i've engaged, and i've been straight up rude. Most of the time I hate the way that i respond to such interactions. while walking through the street today i felt nothing but anger running through my veins as we passed these people, listened to their comments. What's even worse is that sometimes i carry that anger towards people when i don't even here the comments, simply because i've begun to expect them now. it's against everything i try to be.
i guess what i wanted to point out though is that i had an example right beside me of a much higher and respectable reaction. my friend smiled, responded kindly, correcting any misunderstandings respectfully and then kept walking. While this friend is new, i don't know what thoughts were running through his mind, and i don't know if he always responds this way in these interactions. Perhaps he too chews on the same anger that i chew on when i walk through the streets. He's only been here for 2 weeks though...
Egypt (and the middle east) has put me through a lot of tests. at my school i often fell week to the pressures and stresses that the school and children put on to me, so much so that i began treat people and act in a way i never thought i was capable. it's quite scary, and it's humbling. for someone who tries so much to preach love, who tries to carry it everywhere, i've found the most challenges in this place, and i've lost many battles. I guess today though i was given a reminder that you can rise above it. I don't know that my friends way of responding was 'the best'. I have become better also in such interactions now though because i choose to simply ignore them and continue in my way. i just wish that i could find some type of middle ground for these interactions that leave a since of understanding between the two people. i wish that there was a way to respond to the pessimistic and cruel attitudes that i often encounter here that left both parties with feelings of mutual respect rather than distaste and rebuke.
how do you foster that in a community?
in some ways i feel like it's a product of over-packed city life.... when people become so distant from each other expecting that they'll never see them again. it's fine to hurt someone if you know you will never have to face their response. why are these the types of instincts we have though, and how do we overcome them?
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