Afghan refugee tweets paltry meal. gets taunts to "be more grateful" or "go back"

[Demovictory9]

Link to tweet

The 28-year-old Fulbright semi-finalist didn’t expect the response he got after tweeting a photo of his paltry meal as an Afghan refugee at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. Hamed Ahmadi posted the picture – showing two small pieces of chicken, a few slices of fruit and bread – to prove to people that life as a refugee was neither glamorous nor coveted.


Instead, responses included taunts and demands that he be more grateful or “go back to Afghanistan.”

“The point of that tweet was not ... to be complaining, to be very critical,” Mr Ahmadi told The Independent. “I was just describing a situation of Afghan refugees that are in the situation that they never really wanted to be in.

“I had a pretty good job back in Kabul. I had a decent life. I had my family,” he said, adding: “I was forced to flee Afghanistan ... if I had more space [on Twitter], I would have added more explanation – because I wanted to say that this is the refugee life. And we need to be patient.”


Further details about Mr Ahmadi’s own story would very likely silence any detractors or trolls claiming that Afghan refugees are only after a better life.

The journalist and scholar, who spent the past five years in Kabul with his parents and siblings, did not want to flee Afghanistan – and certainly didn’t want to leave his family behind.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/afghan-refugee-at-texas-base-on-why-he-tweeted-photo-of-paltry-meal-and-what-it-means-to-leave-his-family-and-old-life-behind/ar-AAO4x06?ocid=msedgntp

[pbmus]

1. At 300 mil per day....lots of afghanis had good jobs...

[left-of-center2012]

2. Taunts of ...

"Go back to where you came from".

Welcome to America.
Sad.

[struggle4progress]

4. Is that maybe 250 calories?

At most 75 calories in the chicken; 25 calories in the melon; 150 in the bread?

An adult man needs at least 2000 calories a day. They're giving him maybe 500?

It's a starvation diet

How hard could it be for Texans to add a couple of bean and cheese tortillas and some pico de gallo?

Or toss on a loaded baked potato, a good scoop of slaw, and a cupcake?

Fuck. It's not that expensive to serve a decent pan of spaghetti with meat sauce, some salad, and a brownie

[Haggard Celine]

5. I agree. That's not even enough for a child.

The government needs to encourage companies that sell food to donate to the Afghan refugees and other immigrants as well. If they want future brand-loyal customers, they should jump at the chance to build a relationship with those consumers. Many companies do the same thing when there's a disaster, and people remember who donated to the cause.

[True Blue American]

7. You hit the nail right there!

Who is the company that is providing those meals?

And, yes, chances are the $3 million a day was subsidizing his job. How much did it cost the US to fly him here?

CNN has been showing a litany of complaints from refugees. Yet I saw just one picture of a refugee hanging curtains. Where did the apartment and curtains come from? CNN never even mentioned that. Our MSM have become traitors to the truth. Right now they are our number 1 problem.

We have a few brave journalists that are calling them out.

[True Blue American]

8. We have generous people here who are out donating food

On the street in La! One Restaurant owner is doing just that. Many others are doing the same. Whoever is providing such portions need to be blamed.

But thousands are going hungry and thirsty right now.

[Haggard Celine]

12. I hate to see people going without food.

Some people like to bitch about poor people getting food stamps, but I've never understood that. How could you bitch about a program that provides food to the poor? You can't get food stamps unless you can prove that your income isn't enough, after necessary bills, to feed yourself and/or your dependents. I think that these people who complain about such programs have personal problems that they need to work out.

[True Blue American]

21. Having gone hungry a couple of times

I feel for People who really are starving! They need our support, but that picture was deceiving.

[kcr]

26. But everyone can see the bread. Not just you. How is that deception?

Do you think you have some extra special powers of internet perception that only allowed you to see through his cloak of deception? Seriously, if for some reason he actually wanted to hide that bread, he could have moved the camera another inch or so and easily hidden the bread.

[True Blue American]

27. No, Did not say that.

I have no extra sensory power. It was just a true picture would have included the bread, not just that tiny sliver.

[TexasBushwhacker]

22. Most people don't realize that almost all SNAP goes to

families with children, with at least one adult in the home working. With few exceptions, if you're between 18 and 49, you can only get SNAP for 3 months in a 3 year period. Personally, I'm fine with feeding kids.

[Demovictory9]

6. agreed. one thing America has is a lot of excess food

[Retrograde]

23. Food and culture are strongly intermeshed

I know little about the typical Afghan diet, and what foods they find religiously and culturally acceptable. OTOH, I also don't know just what the refugee centers are providing.

Refried beans on a corn tortilla with lettuce, tomatoes, and chiles is one of my lunch staples: I don't know how someone who's never seen a tostada would react to one. Or spaghetti with meat sauce, for that matter: is it halal? does it contain pork or other forbidden items? The refugees are likely under a lot of stress, and eating unfamiliar foods right off can lead to gastric problems.

I also don't know anything about this particular person, and why he received what looks like a small meal. He was being somewhat dishonest by putting the bread mostly out of the picture, but is this typical of what everyone is getting? Did the center run out and have to cut back the amounts? Did he get a child's portion by mistake? Did he show up late and this was what was left? Or does he just like to complain?

My first reaction was: You were among the few people to make it out of Kabul. You're in the US where it's unlikely that the Taliban will kill you. You're being housed and fed until the US can provide a more permanent status. If what you perceive as ill-treatment continues, by all means complain. But for the time being - well, I'm sure there are thousands of others who'd like to be in your position.

[struggle4progress]

31. Heres what World Central Kitchen offered inDulles Airport

https://images.fastcompany.net/image/upload/w_596,c_limit,q_auto:best,f_auto/wp-cms/uploads/2021/08/i-3-90671074-stew-schwarma-and-spinach-the-first-meals-afghan-refugees-are-eating-as-they-land-in-america.jpg

[struggle4progress]

32. What evacuees got at the Philadelphia airport

https://www.inquirer.com/food/afghan-refugees-philadelphia-airport-volunteer-restaurants-20210902.html

[True Blue American]

9. I see two slices of bread barely showing.

[Demovictory9]

10. good eyes.. that's 200 calories

[True Blue American]

11. I am not putting down the person

But his picture was deceiving. And people get all up in arms without seeing the whole picture.

The chicken and cantaloupe would be more than enough for an evening meal for many. I would have to know what the other 2 meals consisted of.

That 12 hours would mostly consist of sleeping.

[cinematicdiversions]

13. It does seem to be a bad not reading the room moment.

He does seem ungrateful and I understand those that objected to the tweet on those grounds.

[GoCubsGo]

14. Must be Red Hats running the facility.

They're taking the opportunity to be cruel to brown people, AND it embarrasses President Biden. It's a twofer!

[Deuce]

16. His tweet seems a little naive at the moment. The realities of this country will hit him soon.

[ck4829]

17. Refugees get taunted while the Purdue Cartel keeps billions of dollars

Them paying a pittance is already "too much".

[milestogo]

18. Texas? Why isn't he reporting on the abortion ban?

[alphafemale]

19. I'll bet there are thousands of people in the path of Ida and fires who....

...would be grateful for a couple bites of fresh fruit, chicken and fresh bread right now.

We are dealing with a few simultaneous climate catastrophes resulting in tens of thousands of unexpected homeless right now.

I'm sure that is on top of MRE's Which are full of calories and nutritious and I am sure freely available on an army base.
But probably also not up to certain privileged palate standards?

A zero star rating of a free meal on Yelp after being plucked from the 14th century speaks hugely to character.

[kcr]

25. I can think of other things that speak hugely to character

Things that some here are clearly oblivious to.

[alphafemale]

28. If you are trying to be snide and clever

It is a better mark of character to have the courage to say something rather than dog whistle.

Posting a complaint about a free meal when people are trying their very best to help on your damn cell phone is about as small as a human can get.

I did not even want to believe it was real at first.
I thought someone had made the entire thing up and was trying to make these displaced people look bad.

And not all refugees, but this individual is certainly an ungrateful cad.

[kcr]

29. This is DU. It seems you got the message loud and clear

As I knew you would.

[alphafemale]

30. It is OK to whizz on the head of people trying to help

If they bring you a turkey for Thanksgiving but it just a store brand and not a Butterball?

[demmiblue]

20. I have read several threads here regarding this story.. some of the responses absolutely disgust me.

[LanternWaste]

24. We see this precisely the same way.

It shames me as well to see the less-than-tolerable responses accusing him of the very thing he said he was not doing.

[tavernier]

33. I hope they gave him some Mayo for the chic sandwich.

That could work in a pinch. As long as it wasn’t miracle whip.

[Politicalgolfer]

34. Texas

...think that could be the problem?