I’ve been an activist since I started becoming aware of social issues in college. I’m sure some would claim that college ‘liberalized’ me, but I’m not entirely sure I care. I prefer to think that college simply educated me, and education is liberalizing. Regardless, I’ve taken part in a number of protests, some of which have turned pretty ugly. As an immigrant (albeit one fortunate enough to have been able to use the legal channels), I identify strongly with the plight of my fellow human beings who are coming to this country. It’s a nation with so much to offer, so it’s easy to see why people would be desperate to get here.
Anyway, in the recent past, there was an executive order to indefinitely ban certain minorities from entering this country. I saw inherent injustice in such a policy, so a couple of friends and I drove up to Pittsburgh (just an hour away from Morgantown, where I was attending WVU) to join the thousands of protesters all across the country. While the contingent was smaller in Pittsburgh then in some of the more major metropolises, there was a decent turnout. The crowd started to get a little rowdy, and the police started spraying pepper spray and arresting people. I can only assume that the factors leading to my arrest were some or all of the following: I’m large, I’m foreign, and I was at the front of the pack. Nevertheless, I’ve now got an arrest on my record, and if I weren’t a citizen, I would be in danger of deportation. This is exactly why I went to the demonstration in the first place.
Word count: 276
Anyway, in the recent past, there was an executive order to indefinitely ban certain minorities from entering this country. I saw inherent injustice in such a policy, so a couple of friends and I drove up to Pittsburgh (just an hour away from Morgantown, where I was attending WVU) to join the thousands of protesters all across the country. While the contingent was smaller in Pittsburgh then in some of the more major metropolises, there was a decent turnout. The crowd started to get a little rowdy, and the police started spraying pepper spray and arresting people. I can only assume that the factors leading to my arrest were some or all of the following: I’m large, I’m foreign, and I was at the front of the pack. Nevertheless, I’ve now got an arrest on my record, and if I weren’t a citizen, I would be in danger of deportation. This is exactly why I went to the demonstration in the first place.
Word count: 276
![[Image: cHAD.jpg]](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/319945672310784010/405609245862658059/cHAD.jpg)
