This ordinary is very involved in his community. “Don’t suck and go dawgs!” he says.

What would you identify yourself as?

I’m a second generation American, I am a Pakistani American. And I’m a male, and I use he/him pronouns.

What are some challenges that you face in this country?

In my opinion it deals with representation. As a minority, it’s not easy to relate to people in the media because not all of them are like you. Being a minority, it’s easy to be misunderstood. Your problems are not at the for-front in American politics. Like for example, me being gay, a lot of people who are straight don’t understand the adversity that I face. Your race tends to be overlooked more than other problems. Like the travel ban right now, not a lot of people really know about them and tend to overlook them.

What are some responsibilities that you have as a second-generation immigrant?

In a literal sense, my dad has worked his entire life. He’s been working since he was in high school. He worked in a golf course, pharmacy, and had his own business. Now he’s 65 years-old and still working. His health is declining, and he wants me to have a high-paying job because he never had that when he was growing up. He worked so hard and now, he wants me to have a better life. But because of that expectation, there’s a higher pressure. Also, I feel like it puts me in a hard spot, there’s this expectation that I need to take care of him. But academically, I don’t know if I will be able to have a salary that can support him and myself.

How do you go through these challenges?

Recognizing the cultural and generation differences. In my dad’s time, during the 40s and 50s, people grew up in a time when being a doctor was the only way of making money. But now, the job market has changed. My dad’s mentality is that you suffer during college to live well in the next 20 years. But my mentality is that you should always be aware of your mental health and be balanced.

Do you have any thoughts on the immigration issue right now?

My aunt, the only reason that she got her green card was because she was the first woman nuclear physicist for NASA. And because of that, all of my family came to America. All my parents went to graduate schools. I feel like now it’s so hard. Even with people who have those degrees are turned down because they want to give “Americans” more opportunities. But no human being is better than another human being. Everyone should have an equal chance.

What advice would you give to all “minorities” in America?

I guess it’s so easy to get bogged down from your stress. I think self-care is very important. You need to know when the work that you do is hurtful. Your mental health is first for everything in your life.

How would you describe the “American Dream” based on your personal experiences or representation of your community?

Personally, I don’t believe in the American Dream. The narrative of the dream is that they work hard and they become successful. But that’s not always the case. Not all white people succeeded — like the Irish immigrants. There are immigrants who do succeed but it’s not easy to do that because there so many limitations. For example in Georgia, if you are an undocumented student, you already face so much adversity because you can’t pay the in-state tuition. So there’s still that discrimination.

What do you like about your community and of yourself?

I feel like because I’m a minority, I have better cultural awareness. The fact that I understand American culture and also Pakistani culture. So because of that, I can understand other cultures better. Being an Asian immigrant, I have a different perspective of racial diversity in America. As an Asian or a brown person, you can’t really fit into two major race categories.

While Pakistan and China might have different cultures, you can still bond with them or understand them because I feel like my immigrant story is analogous or relatable to the stories of other second generation immigrants that I know.

What should we do to create an inclusive society rather than an exclusive one?

I think something that I value a lot is representation. Why do I say that? If you don’t know anyone from different groups then you can’t empathize them. Like if you never meet someone who voted Trump, you can never understand why they voted for him. Like right now, we are so polarized, so we definitely need to learn the differences.

Most importantly, what makes you happy?

Making other people happy. I feel like while we are in college, it’s so easy to be overwhelmed by academics. There are so many mental health issues in college. It’s so easy to get bogged down and stressed. I feel like for me, having to deal with that, it’s important to recognize my friends’ hardships and try to help them. I’m always available and try to be open for my friends.