Muslim teenager gets admitted to Stanford after he wrote #BlackLivesMatter 100 times on his Stanford application

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Ziad Ahmed, 18, has been offered admission to Stanford University after
he repeatedly wrote #BlackLivesMatter on his application. He had been
asked on the Stanford University application “What matters to you, and
why?” and he replied by writing #BlackLivesMatter 100 times.

Surprisingly,
the practising Muslim senior high school student in New Jersey received
an acceptance letter from the prestigious University.

“Everyone
who received your application was inspired by your passion,
determination, accomplishments, and heart,” the acceptance letter read.
“You are, quite simply, a fantastic match with Stanford. You will bring
something original and extraordinary to our campus – a place where you
can learn, grow, and thrive.”

Ahmed told MIC that he was “stunned” to be accepted.

“I
didn’t think I would get admitted to Stanford at all, but it’s quite
refreshing to see that they view my unapologetic activism as an asset
rather than a liability,” he said.

He said that being
a Muslim meant being aligned to the struggles of black people and
pointed out that one-third of the Muslim community in America are black
people.

“To me, to be Muslim is to be a BLM ally, and I
honestly can’t imagine it being any other way for me. “Furthermore, it’s
critical to realise that one-fourth to one-third of the Muslim
community in America are black… and to separate justice for Muslims
from justices for the black community is to erase the realities of the
plurality of our community,” Ahmed said.

The Bangladeshi-American
posted a screenshot of his application and the acceptance letter on
Twitter and the post has been liked a thousand times. Ahmed interned for
Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2016. He also had the
privilege of attending the White House Iftar dinner, held during
Ramadan. Ahmed is the founder of teen organisation Redefy and the
co-founder of the youth-focused consultancy firm JÜV Consulting. He uses
these platforms to get actively involved in combating racial
stereotypes. 

In 2015 the 18-year-old gave a TedxTalk in Panama about what it was like to be a Muslim teenager in the US.

“We
live in a world where we are suffocated by societal expectations,” he
said, adding he had been “labelled more times than a GMO [genetically
modified product]”.

Asides Stanford, he has also been accepted to Yale University and Princeton University.

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