This I Believe: Learning to Accept
AnonymousCarnegie Mellon University – Qatar
Modern Languages – Understanding Cultural Complexities
I am a Qatari, Female, Arab, Muslim individual who values belief, understanding, and respect. I believe I developed those values from my religion, the family I was raised in, and the outside environment that I surround myself with. Being Qatari and Muslim influences what I value and believe as an individual. This is because in the Qatari society we value certain things. For instance, valuing religion, family, and traditions.
Qatar is considered to be a diverse country. This means that we are exposed to new cultures that value different things and that practice different religions on a daily basis. For example, during my school life, I attended and graduated from a private, international school. Personally, this is where I was exposed to individuals who came from different places, spoke a different language, and had different beliefs than me. This was the starting point of where learning to accept immerged.
As I grew and I am still growing, I continue and strive to learn to accept others. I am starting to realize that it is important to at least respect others even if their values and beliefs do not align with mine. I have realized that during my “Understanding Cultural Complexities” course, where I was exposed to the French, American, and different Arab countries cultures. I noticed that the students who came from different Arab countries had different cultures and backgrounds. Even students who came from the same country had different ideas. For instance, we had a group of Qatari students including myself. However, we still did not all agree on the same things. This made me think that everyone was different, which made me realize that I did not need to agree or align with everything. However, I must accept others by understanding where they are coming from and why they believe in certain things.
Having the values of belief, understanding, and respect have helped me process learning to accept. This is because I have the willingness to understand and accept other cultures. During this semester I was introduced to various topics, including Muslims in France. We discussed how Muslims are considered to be terrorists by some, as well as how they were treated/judged based on what they wore, for example, the headscarf (hijab), which made me think of myself. This is because I am a Muslim female who chooses to wear the hijab. I would not want people to treat or judge me differently just because of something that I wear. I would want people to accept me by understanding that this is part of my religion and part of who I am. This made me think of how I perceive others and that I should accept them no matter what, just like how I want people to accept me.
In conclusion, “Understanding Cultural Complexities” made me realize the importance of learning to accept others. It showed me that although the concept of acceptance could seem simple, it has a huge effect. This is because it would help us avoid greater issues such as discrimination, racism, and even stereotypes; this will allow us to somewhat live in peace.