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Thank God that we have reality to drive away the cynicism wrought by persistent stereotypes. How often it is said that men of Pakistani descent are untrustworthy and corrupt; amongst Muslims it has become acceptable to say these things as if they were certain truth. Nowadays it is not unusual to encounter the sniggers, the [...]

A social commentator writes: On Thursday a woman in the cloak of darkness got off the Tube train and stepped on some toes as she rushed. The looks that followed, pure hatred, and then the mutters, some from other Asians: “Stupid women, giving us all a bad name. They should send them back.” Others joined [...]

Silence settled; I held hushed fear. Fear of sins returning to haunt. You changed, rearranged, but like heaven and hell, your mark remains in that gruesome book. No forgiveness or recognition, because they never saw your deconstruction and the reconstruction that followed. I saw the reflection of myself in characters passing by; exploitative, consumptive bodies, [...]

Two years ago, I sat in a concert hall in Grenay, northern France, while the mayor of the town used our performance as a backdrop for his political speech. According to him, our orchestra was ‘a fine example of how the youth of today were the people who would break down barriers and share their [...]