Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American *Book
“Go back to where you came from, you terrorist!” This is just one of the many warm, lovely, and helpful tips that Wajahat Ali and other children of immigrants receive on a daily basis. Go back where, exactly? Fremont, California, where he grew up, but is now an unaffordable place to live? Or Pakistan, the country his parents left behind a half-century ago? Growing up living the suburban American dream, young Wajahat devoured comic books (devoid of brown superheroes) and fielded well-intentioned advice from uncles and aunties. (“Become a doctor!”) He had turmeric stains under his fingernails, was accident-prone, suffered from OCD, and wore Husky pants, but he was as American as his neighbors, with roots all over the world. Then, while Ali was studying at University of California, Berkeley, 9/11 happened. Muslims replaced communists as America’s enemy #1, and he became an accidental spokesman and ambassador of all ordinary, unthreatening things Muslim-y. Now a middle-aged dad, Ali has become one of the foremost and funniest public intellectuals in America. In Go Back to Where You Came From, he tackles the dangers of Islamophobia, white supremacy, and chocolate hummus, peppering personal stories with astute insights into national security, immigration, and pop culture. In this refreshingly bold, hopeful, and uproarious memoir, Ali offers indispensable lessons for cultivating a more compassionate, inclusive, and delicious America. Read more
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Why Must Read Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American?
As someone who has been familiar with Wajahat's writings for over 15 years, I expected this book to be a sort of long-form version of one of his many articles. What I found instead was something that read like a novel or a film script. The observations, lessons, and prescriptions are there, of course - as the title would suggest - but they are embedded in an overall narrative arc that puts context around all of them. I'd love to see these stories come to the big screen eventually. It isn't enough to suggest to fellow Americans how they can best contribute to this ongoing experiment - we need to show why those suggestions are needed, how they are implemented, and most importantly showcase the very human elements behind all of this. I appreciate the humor, the personal anecdotes, but particularly the trajectory: Wajahat wants to see an America where everyone is included in the greater narrative - no more, no less.
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