Had an amazing conversation with my mom on orientalism and being Arab in a western society; how our expierence is not appreciated or understood, but is merely a product of exoticism co-opted by western society as something to benefit from and enjoy while maintaining privilege...

And what makes it so enjoyable to western society is the exoticism, minus the fact that they never had to live the same experiences in order to understand ours. This is not only true of Arab diaspora, but most diaspora...we share our culture with you in ways that make us more...

digestible and non-threatening to others. It may not seem obvious to a lot of you, but it’s absolutely a byproduct of colonialism, and one that you benefit from. Never mind that I can recall every moment where I was made to feel as an “other” due to me being Arab...

The time my grandmother’s food was regarded with disgust (but now all of you Karens would cut a bitch for hummus or grape leaves), or how I was afraid to sing in Arabic because I was already being called a terrorist or getting phone calls at 9:11pm from some kid in high school...

Because now it’s been deemed cool to engage with other cultures, and ouuhh hummus is trendy, Tamino is arab (and also conventionally attractive, but that’s another topic — don’t get me wrong, I love his music but the poetry means something else to me as an Arab), however...

It’s important to realize the contexts in which you are engaging with another culture. I am glad people are opening up, but it is important to make and effort to learn and understand; take it at more than just face value, because it seldom exists as such.