1 post tagged “muslim”
Last night I was watching Waleed Aly being interviewed by Andrew Denton on Enough Rope and some things he said really resonated with me:
...as human beings I think we like to see reflections of ourselves in the public space and Muslims have been really short on role models in the public space in Australia or even in in in the western world. We’ve had some very successful Muslims. John Ilhan, the late John Ilhan’s a very good example of that. But at the same time his real name was Mustafa and he had to become John to become a success.
But you know but someone like Bashar and and he’s a great man as well. I mean he’s impressed everyone at the Essendon Football club with his character, with the way he carries himself. And when you see him out there and you see him do that you suddenly for a moment have this belief this realisation that I could do that, if I had the talent. But but the thing that’s stopping me is that I’m no good not that I happen to be a Muslim or that I come from a Middle Eastern background and that’s incredibly powerful. It it’s so powerful, I don’t think people who don’t have that problem who have never encountered not being represented in the public space in some way understand how debilitating that can be.
Now substitute Muslim with Gay or Lesbian.
Representation is an important and powerful thing.
