For you to understand my story you need to have some background information on Pakistan and its numerous ethnic communities. Pakistan is the homeland of mainly four distinct provinces where the inhabitants speak different languages, have different cultures, and eat different foods.

In some areas, there is very little harmony among the communities. Most Pakistanis subconsciously or consciously harbor prejudices against other communities. There are stereotypes of every ethnic group and they more often than not lead to discrimination. 

I am ashamed to admit that growing up, I was affected by this atmosphere and this subtle resentment became a part of my upbringing. I too harbored such stereotypes in my mind and did not like to associate myself with other ethnic groups. 

My judgement of other people was very clouded and I judged a person from just his ethnic background. It was as if I was judging a book by not even its own cover but just looking at another book with a vaguely similar premise. Such was the extent of my prejudice. 

The most intriguing thing was that I didn’t even know that I possessed such prejudices. That’s how it is most of the time. The people who have a severe problem, don’t even realize that they have it. Such was my case.

Naturally, this one-dimensional outlook of people resulted in me only interacting with my specific community, but thankfully it all began to change when I entered high school. My parents made the decision to send me to Pakistan’s top boarding institute where Pakistanis from all provinces attend. At first, I felt heartbroken as it felt like they were abandoning me, but in hindsight, I thank them for this decision.

During my three-year stay at this institute, I was forced to interact with people from other communities. That is when I realized just how destructive my thinking really was. By spending almost every minute of the day with people of distinct communities I came to understand that at the core we are all humans and that these stereotypes are mere rumors. In this way, I shattered all of my prejudices. 

In those three years, I understood one golden rule which I carry to this day. This rule is so fundamental to our humanity and I think that most of you might have learnt this at a very young age. While I was not so fortunate, I still learnt it through my personal experiences. I understood that any individual regardless of his color or creed can be a capable and compassionate individual that is worthy of respect.