On compassion: A feminist educator's reflections

Nearly twenty years ago, I started my working life as an academic in Applied Linguistics, and I thought that was going to be my life's journey. September 11th changed all that. Publicly, I am an identifiable Muslim female and like many other hijab-wearing Muslim females around the world, I sometimes have had to bear the brunt of the antagonism, the anger, the discrimination and ultimately the fear from the general public when they see me. I represent the "them" in this ever-present dichotomy of "us" and "them". It is this dichotomy which plagues our progress and prosperity as a nation. It polarises us with regards to how we treat each other, how we treat those who are seeking safe shelter on our shores, our migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, and our First Nations people.