A little kindness goes a long way.
I sub-teach in a district that is quite diversified. Pre-k to 8. And a notable number of girls, teachers, staff, etc. wear hijabs, the head coverings for Muslim girls and women.
And I greet and/or go up and tell them "Ramadan Mubarak" (an Arabic greeting meaning "Blessed Ramadan" or "Happy Ramadan," used by Muslims to wish each other well during the holy month of Ramadan). I'm not Muslim and also not from a Middle Eastern background. But I greatly respect these women who fast and take this time of year to make sincere gestures to their religious tenets. (I may be an atheist, but I'm also a humanist.)
Their faces, especially the little girls, light up and smile and thank me. I may be the only one who has recognized their being special. They are not a minority or an enemy of this country.
Yes, I know there are individuals who do not make the best examples of Islam. But these are girls who also want to be accepted.
P.S. I can't necessarily greet the boys with this salutation because I don't know their names and they dress like all the other boys. Hijabs help me recognize the girls/women at least.
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