A Miracle: Qatari and Smart
Noora Al Thani, a 25-year-old worker in the business industry, vividly recalls one of her major regrets in university. Her first-year English professor posed a question directly to Al Thani, and the classroom plunged into a deafening silence. “I remember that day so vividly because of how much I feared being perceived as dumb by everyone in the room,” said Al Thani. “My mind would tell me to answer, yet I defied what my mind said and remained silent for the rest of the semester out of sheer embarrassment,” she added.
An enduring stereotype lingers in Qatar, depicting Qataris as unintelligent, especially in schools and universities by international students. This stereotype persists because of the experiences individuals have had with Qataris.
Mutasim Binidris, a 21-year-old Sudanese medical student studying in Malaysia, recounts his experience in high school, where he believed Qataris showed no interest in pursuing education. “All of the Qataris that were in my class were noisy and never wanted to work hard at all. After that incident, I classified the whole nation as dumb,” said Binidris. This generalization creates a cycle of people spreading the stereotype, holding Qataris back as many of them do not realize their full potential.
Al Thani struggled throughout her life with how her teachers and professors perceived her. In high school, any time she wanted to join a club, like the debate club, her teachers ridiculed her, saying she was not smart enough. “Despite my relentless efforts to demonstrate my intelligence to my teachers, they seemed oblivious to my true potential,” said Al Thani. This experience shattered her confidence, and its effects clung to her as she entered university.
Stereotyping Qataris as unintelligent leads to prejudice, a significant issue because intelligence should not be measured by someone’s nationality. Hissa Al Ali, an 18-year-old student studying in Cardiff, had her own struggles with the stereotype. “I think it is unfair that I always have to doubt myself because of the stereotype I have been subjected to,” said Al Ali.
Al Thani and Al Ali realized they do not have to be chained by this stereotype, deciding to do whatever it takes to represent themselves and show they are the complete opposite of the stereotype. For example, Al Thani began to see herself as an individual rather than representing a country all the time. “I realized that I didn’t have to feel anxious all the time about being dumb because it’s bound to happen to anyone no matter the nationality,” said Al Thani.
Once Al Thani came to her realization, she began to do things she loved without the looming anxiety of representing a country anymore. “I felt like the world was my oyster,” said Al Thani. She began to work in marketing and never doubted herself ever again. For Al Ali, she broke the cycle by “proving my teachers wrong by getting the highest grades in my classes and seeing their pure shock that I am Qatari and smart.”
Al Thani recalls a group project for her business class at university, paired with a non-Qatari who ended up being “lazy and not smart,” but she never generalized a whole nationality because of her bad experience.
This is the problem with generalizing because you have not met every single Qatari to come up with that conclusion, yet many still believe that Qataris are dumb. Binidris fell victim to that until one day he decided to collaborate with Qataris.
Binidris conceived a business idea that required the fusion of his medical expertise with computer science skills. To find suitable collaborators, he reached out to local universities in Qatar. Numerous recommendations led him to approach Qatari friends who, upon joining the brainstorming sessions, shattered any preconceived stereotypes Binidris might have held about them. “I was blown away with the methods of relaying the information, the respect, kindness, and intelligence. That just proved to me that high school is just a period of time,” said Binidris about his perception of Qataris.
Binidris’s experience demonstrates that encountering negativity with a particular nationality shouldn’t lead to a lifelong avoidance — a phenomenon often recognized as experiential knowledge. In Al Ghazali’s book, The Marvels of the Heart: Science of the Spirit, he delves into three types of knowledge, one of which is experiential knowledge, directly applicable to Binidris’s journey.
Experiential knowledge is a form of understanding acquired through firsthand experience, representing a priceless avenue for gaining insights. Regardless of one’s educational background, the practice of experiential knowledge is essential. As inherently biased individuals, challenging these biases is crucial, and experiential knowledge serves as an invaluable means for such challenges. Binidris’s actions exemplify the power of confronting biases through firsthand experiences.
In light of this, Binidris’s positive experience with Qataris not only highlights the fallacy of generalizations but also underscores the critical necessity for an open-minded approach to individuals. It emphasizes the importance of evaluating people based on their merits rather than clinging to preconceived notions.
“One day, I hope to witness a dramatic shift in the narrative, challenging the unfair stereotype that depicts Qataris as unintelligent,” said Al Thani.
