It was indeed a heart wrenching story by Melody Moezzi in TMID of April 30 ‘Go back to your country’. With regard to the article, I have some observations to make:

Violence is never an answer to any problem perceived or real.

Bigotry exists everywhere and unashamedly even in Malta when politicians hint at ‘sending back the illegal immigrants to where they came from’.

I have, however, one disagreement with Melody’s last paragraph regarding the wearing of the hijab and hoodies. She has to understand that an immigrant welcomed into a country is an invited guest, (sometimes not), of the host country, and therefore it is expected that these immigrants integrate with the mainstream. If, for political reasons, there happens to be a trend at discriminating against them, why do they give the bigots an opportunity to attack them by giving away their identity by their attire?

Anti-Arabic, and generally speaking, anti-Middle Easterners’ attitudes have escalated since 9/11 and every Muslim was painted by the same brush, which, of course, is nonsense, but the stigma remains and will be with us for generations, and for as long as terrorism is carried out by the not so moderate Muslims. Children born in the land of the ‘free and brave’ are further confused since their ‘freedom’ seems to be conditional and not as intended when the first Constitution was drafted. But things have changed since, and adapting to the times is a double-edged sword. Sometimes, in order to take advantage of the new, one has to give up a little of the past.

It is much better for these immigrants to give up some of their customs with regard to attire, rather than to perpetuate an antagonistic attitude towards them.

Joe Martinelli

Canada