I have a naturalized Palestinian stepfather, and around the time of the 2016 election with all of the talk of a Muslim ban, Islamophobes were coming out of the woodwork, some of them alas! high school classmates and their friends and acquaintances, and as a result I spent some serious social media time trying to change hearts and minds about Muslims. Ultimately it was a rather futile effort, and mostly I got told that living a short while in Palestine and having Muslim family meant my view of Islam was compromised by being too close, and did not have any bearing on the danger Arabs represent. It was infuriating, and not the way I wanted to spend precious hours of my life, but to do anything else was to let down the literal Good Samaritan who helped to bring me up, and his wonderful family.
I also wanted, from early childhood, to be an Egyptologist. I did my undergrad and most of the work for an M.A. in Archaeology, but ultimately our decisions for what we wanted as a family meant that I never pursued the PhD or worked in the field, but I still follow developments as best I can from rural Vermont. I have no regrets.
The upshot of this all? The fake accounts that want to be my bestie are two types: Earnest young men from predominantly Muslim countries, and those U.S. military guys you mentioned. Funny. They never seem to have any posts beyond a single picture or two. I wonder why that is?
As hopeful as they all are, they never had a chance. I will only friend those I know personally or those whose online behavior I have observed over time, and even then I’m careful. Sorry guys!
no subject
I also wanted, from early childhood, to be an Egyptologist. I did my undergrad and most of the work for an M.A. in Archaeology, but ultimately our decisions for what we wanted as a family meant that I never pursued the PhD or worked in the field, but I still follow developments as best I can from rural Vermont. I have no regrets.
The upshot of this all? The fake accounts that want to be my bestie are two types: Earnest young men from predominantly Muslim countries, and those U.S. military guys you mentioned. Funny. They never seem to have any posts beyond a single picture or two. I wonder why that is?
As hopeful as they all are, they never had a chance. I will only friend those I know personally or those whose online behavior I have observed over time, and even then I’m careful. Sorry guys!