Accused My story of injustice

Adama Bah, 1988-

Book - 2021

"Launching a propulsive middle grade nonfiction series, a young woman shares her harrowing experience of being wrongly accused of terrorism. Adama Bah grew up in East Harlem after immigrating from Conakry, Guinea, and was deeply connected to her community and the people who lived there. But as a thirteen-year-old after the events of September 11, 2001, she began experiencing discrimination and dehumanization as prejudice toward Muslim people grew. Then, on March 24, 2005, FBI agents arrested Adama and her father. Falsely accused of being a potential suicide bomber, Adama spent weeks in a detention center being questioned under suspicion of terrorism. With sharp and engaging writing, Adama recounts the events surrounding her arrest and ...its impact on her life-the harassment, humiliation, and persecution she faced for crimes she didn't commit. Accused brings forward a crucial and unparalleled first-person perspective of American culture post-9/11 and the country's discrimination against Muslim Americans, and heralds the start of a new series of compelling narrative nonfiction by young people, for young people"--

Saved in:

2nd Floor Show me where

363.325/Bah
1 / 1 copies available
Location Call Number   Status
2nd Floor 363.325/Bah Checked In
  • Unsheltered
  • Taken
  • Questioned
  • Framed
  • Violated
  • Bargained
  • Changed
  • Freed.
Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 7 Up--In this first installment of a series that successfully highlights complicated issues through a real person's story, Adama Bah narrates her experiences of being wrongly accused of terrorism after the September 11, 2001, attack. As a Muslim teenager living in the United States, she believed she was an American citizen. But in 2005, when the FBI came to her apartment and threatened to send her and her father back to Guinea, she found out her immigration papers were not in order. Bah was detained for over six weeks in a juvenile detention center and her father was deported to his homeland. She was also wrongly accused of being a suicide bomber. She had to wear an ankle bracelet when she was released from detention In 2010, when she was taken off of the No Fly List, she felt vindicated of her false allegations. Today Adama lives in New York with her husband and family and is working on a nonprofit to help others. The author uses direct, engaging writing to illustrate American culture after 9/11 and the discrimination against Muslim Americans. VERDICT A good addition to a middle school library collections.--Nancy Hawkins, Franklin County H.S., Brookville, IN

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

In this true story, teenager Adama Bah's life is turned upside down by unjust laws in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. The new I, Witness series of chapter books brings true stories of young people living through historic moments to young readers. In this volume, Guinean immigrant Bah recounts how her life changed after the Sept. 11 attacks in New York City. Bah, 13, is at an Islamic boarding school in Buffalo when the attacks occur. She returns home to New York City to celebrate Ramadan wearing full niqab. But her city and her country have changed: She is the focus of hateful treatment, and in 2005 she and her father are detained. The officers interrogate Bah while denying her constitutional right to an attorney, lying to her, and treating her with complete disrespect. After her release, the aftereffects continue to disrupt her life, and she eventually decides to fight back through the courts. Bah writes with an honesty and urgency that will keep readers turning pages through this fast-paced story. With large font, generous spacing, and simple language, it makes for a very accessible introduction to serious topics. The direct access to Bah's thoughts as she lived through this painful experience helps readers identify with the humanity inside us all and eschew the politics of othering. Series companion Hurricane, by Salvador Gómez-Colón, relates the experiences of a Puerto Rican teen in the wake of Hurricane Maria. Eye-opening, thought-provoking history for every classroom and bookshelf. (timeline) (Memoir. 8-14) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.