Muslim teen writes Black Lives Matter in his US college application, gets a call from Stanford
When Ziad Ahmed was asked "What matters to you, and why?" on his Stanford University application, only one thing came to mind: #BlackLivesMatter
Ziad Ahmed, an 18-year-old resident of the United States, recently got admitted into the prestigious Stanford University because of the uniqueness of his colleage application.
As part of his application, Ahmed, an outspoken individual who believes in equality to all, was asked what mattered to him and why. To which, he replied #BlackLivesMatter.
On Saturday, Ahmed posted his answer and acceptance letter on Twitter with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. The tweet now has over 3000 retweets and over 6,000 likes.
"I didn’t think I would get admitted to Stanford at all, but it’s quite refreshing to see that they view my unapologetic activism as an asset rather than a liability," said Ahmed, while speaking to Mic.
He added that his unapologetic progressivism is a central part of my identity. "And I wanted that to be represented adequately in my application," Ahmed said.
Ahmed, a Bangladeshi-American has already become a celebrity because of his activism work. He has already been invited to The White House Iftar dinner and is recognised as a Muslim-American change-maker under the Obama administration.
In 2016, he interned and worked for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. In November 2015, Ahmed gave a TedxTalk in Panama City, Panama, discussing the perils and impact of stereotypes as a young Muslim teen.