6 years ago
Misunderstandings between cultures and countries can run deep.
After 9/11 distrust and fear between America and countries in the Middle East grew.
But a new program born of that tension is erasing stereotypes and building bridges of understanding, all with the help of teenagers.
Jeb Stuart High School in Falls Church is one of the most diverse schools in the country.
"If they don't know Arabs...they ask me where it is," says Sallam Thabit.
Thabit is from Yemen, which is just south of Saudi Arabia. Yemen is a predominantly Muslim country.
He is one of 170 students from the Middle East, living with host families in the United States through a pilot program sponsored in part by the State Department. Thabit eagerly volunteered.
"Most of all...I wanted to see how life is different," Thabit said. "In the beginning... I was scared... nervous, excited, but I've met really nice people... I had no problem with it."
Thabit took being bumped up to Chemistry with the same gusto.
"He said I?ll have no problem with this class...I said, Oh, really," his Chemistry teacher said.
To the teacher's surprise, Thabit didn't have a problem with the advancement. "He is one of my few "A" students," she said.
Most of the students back home in Yemen were too afraid to sign up for the program, worrying that after 9/11 that Americans would resent Muslims.
Thabit found the opposite to be true. "Americans are really nice...and open," Thabit says.
He is a firm believer that one person at a time can help build bridges of understanding across cultures, and he intends to prove it.
The school's program is growing. By next year, as many 500 students from the Middle East will live temporarily with American families and study in American high schools.
Click "Play Video" to view Peggy Fox's full report.
Written by 9 News
