"I have boycotted all the Pathans. I don't buy anything from them."
I thought he was joking. I politely inquired, "Why Amjad saab?"
Mr. Amjad, a government employee, is a resident of Islamabad. He is a moderately educated man in his late fifties. I met him in Lahore when I was assigned to do stock-take of a government institution.
"They are everywhere. In Islamabad and Rawalpindi they own every other shop. A shop which should have been owned by a Punjabi is now owned by a Pathan." He replied.
It hit me. He was not joking.
He continued, "They come to our cities. They take our jobs. They buy our shops. They are taking over our resources. They are hooligans. They create trouble everywhere."
His tone was full of arrogance. His choice of words clearly illustrated his haughtiness and diseased mentality.
I was shocked. The words sounded so familiar but I had never heard such words from a Pakistani for another Pakistani. As the words seeped in, a mix of anger and extreme disgust swept over me. I wanted to scream:
"YOU DON'T OWN THESE RESOURCES!"
Before this encounter I had never met such a person in real life. A person who was an epitome of racist. I read racist comments on internet everywhere. I have seen mild racism (If there is such a thing) at work place. But this was something else. This was real, glaring, unashamed racism.
I chose not to argue. I had no experience of dealing with such a human. I am quite sure even If I had argued it would have been fruitless. You can not undo a racist mindset like that. There is no point in arguing with people in their fifties and sixties who are hard-wired about their beliefs and preferences. They have spent most of their lives. But what scares me is that these people have brought up a new generation. They must have poisoned the innocent minds of their progeny too. The
thought that there are and will be (God Forbid) countless more Mr. Amjads
walking the streets of this country is unnerving.
