CP #1 Dana

Conversation partner #1

     I met with my conversation partner Hassan last Wednesday. We spoke for more than an hour. He is an 18-year-old student from Saudi Arabia. We talked about the two handouts provided by professor Valentine and various other topics.
     I told him I am a lawyer and that I live in Los Angeles and Tallahassee different times of the year.  He told me the word for attorney in Arabic after I looked it up in Google Translate.  It is pronounced Moo-ri.  He said an attorney is someone who gives advice.  We talked about court.  He seemed to understand the concept.  

     Hassan has one uncle living in Tallahassee who works at FSU at a computer programming job.  He says that when he is done with classes, he goes to his uncle’s workplace.  His uncle has him read a book there.  I asked him to show me the book.  He didn’t have the book, but he showed me a photo of a page.  It appeared to be self-help, power-of-positive-thinking sort of publication.

     Hassan is from Riyadh the capital city of Saudi Arabia. We talked about what he wants to do when he grows up – so to speak. He says he wants to be a pilot. He says he drew a picture of a pilot when he was a small boy. His comments piqued my interest, but I didn’t pursue it. He said he has also done some work in the computer programming field for Instagram.  I taught him how to pronounce Instagram.  He apparently has some abilities in the computer programming field.

     We talked about our religious beliefs and how I was raised Catholic Christian and he is Muslim. We talked about alcohol consumption, and how he has been invited by students to drink, but he can’t.  We discussed the difference in meaning between “can’t” and “don’t want to.”  I reinforced that he is probably better off not drinking.  He said the smell of alcohol repels him.  I asked him if he knows why people drink?  He said it makes them feel better or happy.

     He recalled an experience he had in a smoke shop with some other Muslim friends.  Apparently a local man began yelling insults or slurs at them. I asked him what he thought was the reason. He did not know. I had to explain that there are people in this country who are prejudiced, racist, emotionally or mentally ill. These people have hatred and prejudice towards certain groups of people that they perceive to be different than themselves. 

     I did not get upset as I explained this to him, but I find myself getting upset now as I recall the conversation I had with Hassan.  I explained that it’s not just Muslims who are the target of this kind of hatred; it’s African-Americans, Latinos, women and others too. I told him he should not take it personally.  It’s easier said than done, I’m sure.
Hassan told me he did not know what to do in that situation at the smoke shop. He said he couldn’t say anything. I explained the difference between “couldn’t” and “didn’t”.   He has been told by his uncle not to respond in situations like the one he found himself in.  I told him I agreed with his uncle. i.e. not saying anything was the best plan of action.  It was better that he didn't

     I asked him if he knew about September 11. He was aware that some of the pilots had been from Saudi Arabia. I explained to him that the attack is the reason why some Americans feel negatively towards people from the Middle East.  I did not go any further into that topic. We discussed concepts of "love" and "like" and their differences too. 

     Hassan is a teenager and it may be a challenge to nail-him-down about future meeting times.  It also appears that his uncle may be keeping a short leash on him.  He explained that he does not come from a family with a lot of money.  His father is a working man, and they are not wealthy. Hassan said that fast food is expensive here compared to Saudi Arabia.  A meal at ChicFilet costs 8 dollars here and only 3 dollars in his country.  I was surprised.  I thought they were rolling in dollars in Saudi Arabia.  He explained that some students are here because the Saudi government has sent them here. That is not Hassan’s situation. 

He rides a bicycle to school. I told him to bring the book he is reading to our next meeting. We agreed to meet at Starbucks on Saturday at a specific time.  I told him I will buy him a coffee and we will talk before he goes to a gathering at his uncle’s house.  He likes drinking coffee, but wants to sit outside rather than inside.  I am looking forward to meeting up with my new conversation partner Hassan.