by Bay Area Guy
In my last post, I used an image from a humorous meme called "Islamic Rage Boy," which uses well-timed photos to regale us with hilarious facial expressions. As funny as the pictures are, the man behind the meme, Kashmiri activist Shakeel Ahmad Bhat, has lived a rather harrowing life. It's no wonder he's so angry. If I were illiterate, crippled on account of being tortured, and had watched my sister get thrown out of a window, I too would be enraged; and to top it all off, the poor man is now an object of international ridicule.
The reason why I bring up someone like Islamic Rage Boy is because he made me ponder immigration, nationalism, and the supposed obligation that Western countries have to allow destitute people like Bhat to emigrate and seek a better life. Obviously, the nationalistic alt right would prefer that the likes of Bhat stay put in their home countries. But in my opinion, for nationalism to function as a truly powerful force, it requires more than a defensive fear about immigration and shifting demographics – as rational as such fear may be.
The reason why I bring up someone like Islamic Rage Boy is because he made me ponder immigration, nationalism, and the supposed obligation that Western countries have to allow destitute people like Bhat to emigrate and seek a better life. Obviously, the nationalistic alt right would prefer that the likes of Bhat stay put in their home countries. But in my opinion, for nationalism to function as a truly powerful force, it requires more than a defensive fear about immigration and shifting demographics – as rational as such fear may be.
