English Composition 2
Professor Mano
UCLA ID #404040359
Lifting the Veil of Ignorance
For as long as I can remember, I have always had a hard time explaining my ethnicity to people. Telling an American that I am an Iraqi is like playing 9/11 and terrorism news clips in their heads. Living in a post 9/11 world, people assume that we Iraqis are radical terrorists, or at the very least someone to be pitied for our lack of rights in an oppressive culture. For this, I blame the media for instilling ignorance and lies into everyday American’s thoughts. American’s opinions are mainly formulated from what is exposed to them through news coverage and online media. For example, if one simply went onto CNN or any other news station …show more content…
I myself was born in a small town located in Northern Iraq, called Abasseya. Presently there is approximately a population size of five-thousand people. Abasseya is like most small towns in Iraq, it is isolated; in fact, it takes about a fifteen-mile drive to get to each town. The main entrance into Abasseya is through a checkpoint. For the safety of each town’s residents, the towns’ checkpoints are guarded round the clock by Iraqi military. The Iraqi military guards are very subjective and they determine who to let in or turned away. No one is allowed inside unless they live there or have a legitimate reason for wanting to enter; this is done in an attempt to avert any potential crimes or quarrels amongst different …show more content…
A good Iraqi child is obedient and in no way questions authority. At very young ages, Abasseyas’ youth quickly attain proper etiquette that they must use both at home and especially in public. Children must keep quiet in public and are not allowed to be loud or boisterous. This teaches children self-discipline and restraint. At puberty, girls are separated from neighborhood boys in order to retain their purity and femininity. Females then tend to take on household domestic work, while the males work with the father. The Abasseya way of child upbringing is very much different from the Western culture, but the most distinctive aspect of all is how much more responsibility the youth