Video Transcription

Rocky – Schools Standing Up to Racism

And I saw my teacher. I walked up to her to say hi, and she looked at me in absolute disgust. She said, “Why do I have to have so many disgusting Afghan kids in my class?”

Hi, my name is Raquel Zadeki. I’m currently studying a Bachelor of Law and Commerce at Deakin University, and I’m a student intern at Kenyon & Medicine’s law firm. Originally, I’m from Afghanistan, but I was born and raised in Iran.

Being a child in Iran wasn’t super easy because I was Afghan. I was often times discriminated against, and I was bullied. I was bullied for being Afghan and for having slightly darker skin than those around me. Simply walking down the street made me so nervous because I never knew when someone would throw something at me or when someone would make fun of me because of the way I looked.

For a number of years, I didn’t have access to education because of my race, my nationality, and my gender, and also my family’s financial situation. After my father worked incredibly hard, I finally got the chance to go to school. I absolutely adored my school. I loved my uniform, I loved my books, and I looked after them like my life depended on them.

I remember the very first day of school. I walked into class, and I was so excited that I could finally learn something new. I saw my teacher. I walked up to her to say hi, and she looked at me in absolute disgust. She said, “Why do I have to have so many disgusting Afghan kids in my class?”

I was very hurt to hear that because, as a young child, you take those words very personally. I was so upset about the fact that she concluded that I was not good enough to be her student, and I was not good enough to be a part of her class simply because I was Afghan and I had a different nationality than hers.

When I was younger, I used to be able to read my older sister’s books when she was in grade five, and I was only in grade one. This always left my teachers very shocked. I was a perfect student—always on top of my class with perfect scores. I was just an ideal student. Because of this, school quickly became an escape from reality for me. It was the only place that I could feel like I was myself. It was the only place where I could dream, and it was the only place where I could achieve my goals and aspirations for my future.

But even being the perfect student didn’t stop others from bullying me and discriminating against me. I was always the ugly duckling, the odd Afghan girl who no one liked and no one wanted to be around. I was always treated so differently than others, and so negatively. This just made me embarrassed of myself and who I was.

I was embarrassed of being Afghan, and I was embarrassed of my culture. Soon enough, I disconnected myself from everyone around me, and I isolated myself. I would always avoid the question, “Where are you from?” at all costs because I didn’t want to have to explain to other people that I was from Afghanistan, but I was born in Iran. Because of the situations that I was in, now I don’t really have a lot of regrets in my life, but this was probably the only regret that I have. I regretted being embarrassed of who I was and being embarrassed of my culture just because of what other people said to me. I regretted not being able to cherish my culture and be connected to the people around me.

Soon after starting school, I very, very unfortunately lost my father due to cancer. My father was my biggest role model. He was my biggest believer, and I was so grateful to have his support during that time. It was a devastating time for myself and my family. Time went on very slowly, and I had no clue what to do without him being there.

Life in Iran was even more difficult. We could no longer afford to stay there, so we had to come to Australia. Back in Iran, my family and I didn’t live in the greatest neighbourhood. There were always thugs around who would hurt anyone that they saw. This particular night, when my father was returning from work, he was bashed by a couple of thugs. I came home and saw shattered glass, broken windows, and broken doors in my house. I saw my father laying down in the van with a lot of bruises, a lot of scars, and he looked helpless. He couldn’t do anything, and because of this, he was forced to settle without real compensation. There was no lawyer to help him. The legal system was not on his side because he did not have enough money, and he was Afghan.

From then on, I made it my goal to become a human rights lawyer so that I can help other people who have similar situations and who are less fortunate than I am. When my father passed away, I saw him laying down on the ground so peacefully, but yet I had no idea what to do. He was there in my arms like nothing had happened, and I just wanted him to get up again. I wanted him to put me on his shoulders now and buy me that ice cream that he was saving for me.

When I was little, I used to hate empty spaces. I hated empty spaces, and I would fill them up with whatever I could. If I had a test and there was one line left, I wrote absolutely whatever to fill that up. But at that moment, I felt like everything felt so blank in my life. It was just a blank page that I could not fill up. For the first time in my life, I didn’t have anything to write down, and I couldn’t think of anything to do.

As a refugee, I never really had a place to call home. Everything seemed so foreign to me. It was so different, both in Iran and in Australia. My journey was a bit difficult. I wanted to find a place that I could call home. I wanted to feel a sense of belonging, and I wanted to feel a sense of connection. I didn’t want to be different. I wanted to fit in with other people, and I wanted to be the same. I wanted to be treated the same. I had enough of being treated like the odd one out.

So, I locked myself in my room, and I studied so hard. I wanted my English to be perfect so that I could finally communicate effectively with other people. Luckily, in Australia, I had the privilege to meet amazing people who would help me and give me a guiding hand without expecting anything in return. Thanks to those people, I was finally able to build some confidence. I was able to participate in social clubs, and I was able to communicate with other people. I was no longer alone. I was no longer the lonely kid who would eat lunch by herself.

From then on, I started to participate in different leadership activities, and I was so fortunate to become a school leader in grade 8. Being a school leader gave me so many different opportunities and helped me learn a lot of different things in different ways. From then on, it sparked a passion within me. It made me want to create a change in the world by using my voice and being the leader that everyone needed.

I want to leave everyone with one important message that I have learned the hard way in my life. I want to let you know that when life seems like a blank page, first of all, acknowledge that it’s okay. It’s okay to be able to sometimes feel lost. It is okay to be different. From then on, when you’re ready, fill out the page with great and memorable memories, and always be the best version of yourself that you can be.

My father used to always tell me, “Always be the hardest worker in your life. You don’t have to be academically smart, and you don’t have to be perfect. You just have to have goals that you can potentially achieve in the future.”