jennifer bryan
13
school on September 11
th
and laughed about the tragedy after it happened. This rumor was so
widespread that New York Times reporter Dexter Filkins opened his article on national 9/11
myths with reference to this story: “Did you hear? Arab schoolchildren in Jersey City told their
classmates ahead of time that the World Trade Center would be attacked.” (Filkins 2001). The
school in question was the one where students claimed to have seen Muslim men dancing on
rooftops of buildings, celebrating as they watched the towers crumble. In part, because of stories
like these, all schools in Jersey City remained closed for two days after September 11.
Sadly, nearly every mother I talked with shared a story of a child being beaten up or
picked on because of their religion or their Arab appearance. Most of these acts have gone
unreported because parents were afraid to “cause trouble.” They feared that if they made waves
in the school or among neighbors, someone would call the FBI about them, a prospect that is
especially worrisome for undocumented immigrants. Furthermore, even when Muslim families
did report acts of violence against their children, they often dropped the charges or asked the
judge to be lenient to perpetrators. An Egyptian American Muslim woman told me:
My son, he was beat up on September 26. In school they act like everything is
OK. But after school they chase him, they call him a terrorist, they throw rocks at
him and they beat him up. I report this to the police. We caught one boy and we
had the trial. But I told the judge to go easy on him. It’s not that I’m afraid—
because Islam makes me strong. But I know he’s young and it’s hard. It’s a very
difficult time right now, a very difficult time.
As a result of hostile acts like this, after 9/11 many Muslim parents made arrangements to
leave work early in order to walk their children home from school. They also limited their
children’s outdoor play activities, and encouraged children to befriend other Muslim children in
order to avoid being teased by non-Muslims. In fact, many Muslim children I have spoken with
told me that they have been “abused” by kids in school everyday for being Muslim.
Feeling Cast Out of the Larger Community
After the World Trade Center tragedy attack, many Arab Muslims in Jersey City were as
devastated by the loss of lives and the destruction of the Twin Towers as other Americans. They
were also just as enthusiastic about participating in volunteer efforts in downtown Jersey City,
that is, until it became clear that they were not welcome by the wider community in these
volunteer activities. A Pakistani Muslim young woman explained:
I’ll never forget that day as long as I live. I felt so bad for all the people, all the
families. All the people looking for their sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers. It
Convention