Today, we’re looking at Alaa El-Saad’s This I Believe essay,  “America’s Beauty Is in Its Diversity”. You can read the transcript or listen to her recording. Once you’ve read her essay, answer one of the following questions. Your response should be around 250 words. 

• What do you think of El-Saad’s claim that “America is built on the idea of freedom?” 
• How does her example of wearing the hijab square with your understanding of freedom in the US? 
• How would you react if one of your classmates ridiculed a peer for wearing the hijab?
• El-Saad closes her essay by stating that, “everyone is different here … This is the beauty of America.”  Why do you agree or disagree with this statement?