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Students
return safely For Tahira Hussain of Pakistan enjoying the holidays with loved ones during the winter break was different than in previous years. Hussain, a junior international relations major, was one of many students who chose to leave the United States to go home for the winter break and made it back.However, on the way back she had noticed that security had become tighter at airports. She said when her plane from Pakistan landed in Frankfurt, Germany she saw that other Pakistani nationals were being detained and questioned by authorities. “They got stopped because they had a green passport instead of a blue one. It is unfortunate that some of us became subject of scrutiny for no reason,” Hussain said. John Singleton, director of International Student Services, said he hasn’t received any notification about students who wanted to return having trouble getting back to the United States. He said he would have exact figures at the end of January. Singleton said parents’ worries for the security of their children were one of the most frequent issues he had to talk about on the telephone when parents called. Hussain said her parents were scared for her safety in the United States. “It is already a big thing for a parent to let a child go that far in the first place. Secondly, they feel that the place I was going to study is not the same any more,” she said. Singleton said two students from Middle Eastern countries decided to stay home because of the wishes of their families. He said a few students of Middle Eastern origin decided to transfer to Purdue University and the University of North Texas because those campuses have a much larger Middle Eastern community, which would make them feel more comfortable. Singleton said that a couple of former international students, who have graduated from TCU within the past four years, have been interviewed by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, but no current students have been questioned. Manochehr Dorraj, a political science professor, said foreign exchange students should be considered ambassadors of good will, instead of being treated as scapegoats for the tragic events of September 11th. In the age of globalization, the United States’ financial and cultural influence is overwhelming around the world, he said. “As the United States, being the greatest profiteer of globalization, we cannot close America to certain parts of the world,” Dorraj said. Hussain said she has noticed that people have become more conscious of the ethnic characteristics of others. However, such a differentiation is awkward in the United States she said because being American doesn’t mean being a particular ethnicity. Rather she said the appearance of new forms of prejudices raise a threat for peace because they lead to hatred and hatred is what caused the events of Sept. 11. David
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