National Day
The day we left for Prague was UAE National Day. The country had the largest fireworks show ever in Abu Dhabi and there were numerous parades. The other thing that happens is people decorate their cards with UAE regalia and drive around town. There were rumors of cars that covered their entire windshields with a UAE flag and drove looking out the side of the car. On the last day of school before the holiday, the school also had its celebrations. All kids were encouraged to wear their traditional dress, whether this was Arab boys wearing their kandoras or Pakistani students wearing their decorated tunics. We had traditional food, students could ride an Arabian horse, and hold a falcon (worth 55,000 dirhams, about $15,000). We also had a student-teacher football (soccer) game which was fun (I’ve been playing more football than I think I ever have. A group of teachers usually plays in the gym after school on Thursday afternoons). The Head Boy also gave a talk about Sheik Zayed, the first leader of UAE whose leadership was central in unifying the country and developing the country’s infrastructure and economy.
Even as xenophobia and racism continue to be a problem at the school and in the larger country, it constantly amazes me how a country can be made of such an ethnically and nationally diverse population. Out of the 5.5 million residents, Wikipedia says that 42% of the population is Indian, 17% is Emirati, 13% is Pakistani, 7.5% is Bangledeshi, 11% is Western, and 9% is Arab from other country’s in the Gulf. Such a diverse population is brought here because of UAE’s vibrant economy. And even as the country has achieved such substantial development and is working towards increased tolerance, sharp inequalities and divisions still exist. It has been noted that Dubai and the UAE is a microcosm for what is happening in the larger world. As the world is flattened, more people who were not in contact with each other now are forced into contact. The question is whether we will build and maintain barriers around our identity or connect amidst these differences of religion, ethnicity, nationality, etc. How the UAE and the rest of the world wrestles with the issue of identity will determine the shape that our world takes in the next century. As National Day and similar celebrations around the world encourage tolerance and connection over shared goals of peace and unity, the real work comes in actually upholding these ideals, if one wishes (or, more realistically, has the opportunity) to participate in the global world (and its all-encompassing economy).
The day we left for Prague was UAE National Day. The country had the largest fireworks show ever in Abu Dhabi and there were numerous parades. The other thing that happens is people decorate their cards with UAE regalia and drive around town. There were rumors of cars that covered their entire windshields with a UAE flag and drove looking out the side of the car. On the last day of school before the holiday, the school also had its celebrations. All kids were encouraged to wear their traditional dress, whether this was Arab boys wearing their kandoras or Pakistani students wearing their decorated tunics. We had traditional food, students could ride an Arabian horse, and hold a falcon (worth 55,000 dirhams, about $15,000). We also had a student-teacher football (soccer) game which was fun (I’ve been playing more football than I think I ever have. A group of teachers usually plays in the gym after school on Thursday afternoons). The Head Boy also gave a talk about Sheik Zayed, the first leader of UAE whose leadership was central in unifying the country and developing the country’s infrastructure and economy.
Even as xenophobia and racism continue to be a problem at the school and in the larger country, it constantly amazes me how a country can be made of such an ethnically and nationally diverse population. Out of the 5.5 million residents, Wikipedia says that 42% of the population is Indian, 17% is Emirati, 13% is Pakistani, 7.5% is Bangledeshi, 11% is Western, and 9% is Arab from other country’s in the Gulf. Such a diverse population is brought here because of UAE’s vibrant economy. And even as the country has achieved such substantial development and is working towards increased tolerance, sharp inequalities and divisions still exist. It has been noted that Dubai and the UAE is a microcosm for what is happening in the larger world. As the world is flattened, more people who were not in contact with each other now are forced into contact. The question is whether we will build and maintain barriers around our identity or connect amidst these differences of religion, ethnicity, nationality, etc. How the UAE and the rest of the world wrestles with the issue of identity will determine the shape that our world takes in the next century. As National Day and similar celebrations around the world encourage tolerance and connection over shared goals of peace and unity, the real work comes in actually upholding these ideals, if one wishes (or, more realistically, has the opportunity) to participate in the global world (and its all-encompassing economy).
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