I have too many “Flying While Muslim” horror stories to choose just one.

share your #FlyingWhileMuslim story

I’m an Iraqi hijabi who grew up in the United States during the so-called “War on Terror” and the Iraq War, and I have too many “Flying While Muslim” horror stories to choose just one. One time, when the airport was singling out my family as always at the metal detectors and giving us an extra thorough treatment, an airport agent was bewildered to discover that my little brother, then eleven years old, was legally too young to be declared a security risk, though he had been marked with four S’s. For years, whenever we traveled to visit our family in the Middle East, my dad and brothers would get interrogated at customs despite not being accused of anything, while my mom and I waited in fear, sometimes for hours.

Another time, a particularly racist border agent was rummaging through our luggage for hours after all of the other travelers had been allowed to go home, and when he found my diary, he started reading through it and berating me about the contents within; I was sixteen at the time. While being mistreated at the airport, there are many times when I’ve felt like I might die or have my father get taken away from me for no reason or never be allowed to see my home again. It’s a wild feeling, to go from a state of dignity with which God has created every human being to suddenly having your rights violated in such a substantial and apparent way.

I won’t be able to mention every story, but here’s one last one for the road: more recently, I was traveling on my own from the US to Canada, and right as my fellow passengers were shown to the airport exit, I saw a guard mark my ticket with the letter M and divert me to a line that read “immigration.” It should be noted that I’m a US citizen and was visiting my family in Canada for a few weeks. The line was in a shady corner of the airport that looked distinctly different from the rest of the building, and there was no seating, so I stood for half an hour with no explanation as to why I was there. I tried to leave the line and told the guards, “I’m not immigrating; I’m a citizen!” They gruffly replied that I’m in the right line and forced me back. I read Ayat al Kursi and felt that familiar fear that I would never make it to my destination. But alhamdulillah, al Wakeel has control over all things, including the oppressors who think they have free reign.

Have you ever received a response or resolution from either an airline, airport or government official regarding the discrimination you experienced? If so, what was the response or the result?

I've never filed a complaint; you don't complain to the wrongdoer who wrongs you.

Has the discrimination you've faced made it harder for you to travel? If so, in what ways and at what cost?

Traveling in the West always involves an extra element of fear for me as a Muslim. But I've especially felt afraid for the men in my family when they've had to travel.

What was your reaction to the No-Fly List leak story? how did it make you feel?

The article is simultaneously shocking and unsurprising. I'm grateful the Islamophobia and racism that is our lives whenever we travel is increasingly become exposed to the general public.