Proud: Chapters 14–15

This new initiative would be composed of American trailblazers in women’s sports who embody and support the secretary and department’s efforts to empower women and girls globally through sport.

Being a part of this global initiative would be an amazing opportunity to merge my interests in diplomacy with my love for sports.

I had a World Cup in London at the end of the week, so I flew in a few days before to meet with cultural attaches and representatives from the United States embassy.

As it turned out, the first school I visited, the Sarah Bonnell School for girls, had a large contingent of Muslim students.

Media depictions of Muslims as terrorists and foreigners had inundated our televisions and movie screens, and these harsh misrepresentations fueled anti-Muslim bigotry and policies in America.

Media depictions of Muslims as terrorists and foreigners had inundated our televisions and movie screens, and these harsh misrepresentations fueled anti-Muslim bigotry and policies in America.

Some questioned my traveling alone without a family escort, others opined that my fencing uniform was too tight.

In addition to my speaking engagements at universities, with the State Department, and in the Muslim community, there was now a growing interest in my career by mainstream media outlets who found my story as an African-American, hijab-wearing Muslim in a traditionally white and elitist sport to be fascinating.

It was kind of ironic that as anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States and the rest of the Western world increased, the media’s interest in my story grew in tandem.

Because so few Americans personally knew a Muslim, and media misrepresentation of Muslims was at an all-time high, I was mindful that as one of the few Muslims receiving positive attention, I was in a unique and potentially precarious position.

“You must take this off,” the security officer barked at me in halting English, pointing at my hijab.

Sensing the agent’s belligerent energy, my mom stood next to me and tried to deescalate the situation by calmly asking the security officer what the problem was.

He repeated his words verbatim, indicating with hand gestures that we would have to remove our scarves.

I tried to be cordial and plead our case, but the officer seemed firm in his words.

I didn’t complain about any of these bonus activities, though, because they were a rewarding and uplifting way to balance out the rigorous training I continued to do.

There were so many dress options online, yet the few that fit the definition of modest were painfully dull and matronly.

Why was it so hard for designers to understand that being fashionable was not antithetical to being modest?

Islamophobia was on the rise in the United States, perpetuated by violent stereotypes and religious extremism portrayed in the media.

And as a result, Muslims were being marginalized and discriminated against in record numbers.

With so few Americans having a favorable opinion of Muslims, Islam had grown to be one of the most stigmatized religions in the country.

The Olympic qualification period culled points from competitions held between April 1, 2015, and March 31, 2016.

As I had in the past, I completely compartmentalized my life and prioritized fencing above all else.

I often spoke with Peter, knowing he would always impart words of wisdom in our lengthy heartfelt talks.

There were twelve fencers traveling all together—the four from the national team and about eight others who would also vie for a chance to fence at the Olympic Games, including my sister—as well as the coaching staff and the team doctor.

One of the fencers came over and announced that Ed was having an impromptu team meeting.

My place on the US Women’s Saber Team was an affront to their sensibilities.

The dysfunction was so rampant, we regularly had to have meetings to address the issues that plagued our team.

I spoke up on Eliza’s behalf to corroborate her feelings of isolation and the examples of unsupportive behavior from Mariel and Dagmara.

I think her desire to fit in with the team was so strong, she decided that having the black sheep of Team USA defending her was not the way to gain the support of Mariel and Dagmara.

When she saw me splayed out on the floor and the mess in the tub, she ran for the phone and called the team doctor.

Rather than prescribe anything to combat the illness that was now wreaking havoc on my system, the doctor told me my body was doing its job and would rid itself of everything on its own.

The pain roiling through my body was so excruciating and unlike anything I had ever experienced before, I felt like someone was using a rolling pin to smash shards of glass into my intestines and stomach.

After each violent attack, I started to fear that maybe it wasn’t food poisoning, but rather that something far more insidious was responsible for the gut-wrenching torture taking place in my body.

I had high energy in my first match, like I knew I had to get a jump on my opponent in order to stay in contention to win.

I could tell she had been crying, not because she was sad, but because she was as exalted as I was.