The Elan POV: Why Ahmed Mohammed and “clockgate” are good for the Middle East

By now you’ve heard the story of Ahmed Mohammed; the whip smart Muslim teen arrested in Texas under suspicion of bringing a home made bomb to his Texas high school. (It was a clock, Texas.) Now, after a highly politicized and publicized meeting with President Obama, Ahmed has announced he is moving to Qatar with his family, for good.

“We are going to move to a place where my kids can study and learn, and all of them being accepted by that country,” said Ahmed’s father, Mohamed Elhassan Mohammed.

The Qatar Foundation has offered to pay for his high school and college in Doha.

This story has undoubtedly upset many of you, our dear Elan followers, as fellow supporters, and champions of Middle Eastern people and culture regardless of their geography.

Islamophobes have had a field day with this story of a kid who built a freaking clock; disparaging Ahmed’s efforts as simply taking a clock apart and stuffing it into a box, claiming his father plotted the entire mishap, and racially profiling the Sudanese born 14-year-old.

But the Elan Way is to turn it around, and realize that what has happened to Ahmed is a good thing for the Middle East and indeed for Ahmed.

Qatar recognized this amazing kid’s potential and stepped in. They realized the cultural sensitivity of the situation and that this kid would now have a difficult time living and thriving in Texas. Texas’ (and America’s) loss is Qatar’s gain. But that’s not the only reason.

Here’s why Ahmed Mohammed and “clockgate” are good for the Middle East:

Social media was taken over for a few days by a bright, positive thinking Muslim kid with huge potential.
President Obama is using Ahmed to mock Islamophobes
Qatar is using this boy to mock the Islamophobes.
Small minded people who spew hatred and refuse to think globally have yet again been exposed as petty and mean spirited. If even 10 people who have followed Ahmed’s story change the way they think as a result, it’s a win.

Turn it into a positive. That’s the Elan Way. We wish you luck, Ahmed.