Graphic by Lucas Olscamp/The Gazelle

This past summer, but definitely not only this past summer, there have been far too many cases of black people being killed by police officers. In the United States, John Crawford III was shot in a Walmart, Eric Garner choked to death and Mike Brown shot six times. During the past couple of weeks, none of the officers who committed these murders were indicted, meaning none will ever have to go to trial for their actions.

The thing is, these events do not happen in a vacuum. They are not isolated happenings in which three black people were coincidentally just asking for trouble.

These events are the consequence of systematic racism in the U.S.A.. Living in black skin in the U.S. means it’s harder for me to get that job, my rights aren't granted to me as quickly as they are to my white counterparts and it’s unsafe for me or any of my brothers to do so much as speak to a police officer.

But to the individuals who would rather avoid talking about racism in society, I say: Fear not. I’m not here solely to tell you how very real racism is, because this is a fact that I don’t have to prove. Now, some people may hit a roadblock here and say, “Well, that’s America, what does that have to do with me?” I am positive that this has been going through people’s minds, as was apparent through the negative reactions of some members of our community to recent initiatives to bring Ferguson to campus.

Some of us were jarred and scared by the word “Black” on the Black Lives Matter posters. Others were scared that the discussion event about Ferguson would not represent “the whole picture,” an opinion that I am yet to understand. And again, some people just do not understand why I, or anyone else who has worked to get the event going, would think that the event should have been brought all the way to Abu Dhabi.

Ever since my freshman year at NYU Abu Dhabi, I have experienced and heard of racially charged conflicts amongst us. Whether it’s cases of using offensive language towards someone, or dealing with a peer in a specific manner because of his or her race, or blatantly holding a peer to very low expectations simply because of their race, NYUAD is not a place that is racism-free. And yet, this community continues to act like race is not a topic that needs to be discussed.

If NYUAD is going to continue to showcase that charming map of the world with its pins and lines crossing all seas during Candidate Weekend, then NYUAD needs to wake up and stop acting as if we do not have problems we need to confront; problems that inevitably crop up when people from multiple backgrounds come together.

We need to confront why racism against Emiratis is so normalized at this school. We need more actions like that of my good friend Emily Wang, who spoke out about racial microaggressions.

We need to tackle the prevalent Islamophobia, especially considering we are in an Islamic country. We need to stop acting like its okay to use the N-word around any black person or, really, anyone at all — no matter how much Drake you listen to.

We also need to learn how to recognize that emotion and personal connection to issues is completely OK. Oftentimes we get wrapped up in facts, numbers or playing devil’s advocate. But instances of racism and discrimination are not times for me or anybody else to look at figures.

It’s a time to call out ignorance, and ask that it be fixed to avoid any future moments of disappointment. The last thing we need is a member of this community feeling like they are not welcomed.

We are adults: administration, faculty, staff and students. We are at a point in our lives in which we can expect to be held fully accountable to our actions, and we need to be conscious of our individual positions of privilege and responsibility. We should be able to support our own claims and confront one another. We need to wake up and be aware of even the hardest truths, without reverting to feeling threatened by them.

Stop blaming the individual combatting racism for the racism they are facing. We are not being too emotional, nor are we exaggerating. Trust me, the last thing I wanted to do when I came all the way to Abu Dhabi for university is fabricate stories of racism so that everyone can pity me. I had thought I left racism back home in the States, but, clearly, I was wrong.

There are battles that we need to start fighting here, battles that have yet to be brought to light. As an organizer for the Ferguson initiatives, I know one of our main goals was to hopefully inspire all students to bring forward the issues that are close to their heart and relevant to their home countries.

We are a community, which means each of us should be guaranteed the space we need to do justice to our feats. If we continue down this path of silencing, bashing and shaming each other for actually being bold enough to tackle the problems at hand, we will not have peace on campus.

And calm down, I do not mean there will be riots at NYUAD. I mean, the gaps within our community will only widen, resulting in a fragmented, nonchalant atmosphere drenched in denial of the real world.

If the issues at hand are not done justice, there will be no peace.