#I stand with Ahmed.

This one social media phrase not only stood in support of Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old who was detained for bringing what school officials thought was a bomb, but also sparked conversation about racial discrimination.

In hopes of impressing his teachers, the MacArthur High School freshman brought a homemade clock to school. But instead of high fives, he received handcuffs and interrogations regarding his creation of a “hoax bomb”. Charges have been dropped but he was still suspended. Although school officials say they followed proper school guidelines, I believe that this wouldn’t have happened if his name wasn’t Ahmed Mohamed and he wasn’t Muslim.

Not only did people stand behind Ahmed when they used the hashtag #IStandWithAhmed, but they stood against racial discrimination and stood for creativity.

After only a few days, #IStandWithAhmed has been mentioned over 1.6 million times on Twitter. As I was scrolling through, I noticed the amount of support from not only Muslims but all racial groups of various ages, all over the world. Of those, Ahmed received support and invitations from Twitter, Mark Zuckerberg, NASA, MIT, Hillary Clinton and even President Barack Obama. The Internet is pretty cool sometimes. I mean, wouldn’t you freak out if the POTUS or your dream school supported you?

People of all walks of life were supporting him, which goes to show that even though you may be discriminated against, you should know that there are a lot of people there for you. The outpouring on social media has pushed Ahmed to keep building and being creative.

Although Ahmed’s story is one that ended with several people on his side, it’s important to realize that many stories go untold. Students all over the nation are subjected to racial discrimination. I really hope one day we can all acknowledge and learn about each other’s races, religions and backgrounds instead of discriminating and being ethnocentric.

As Jimmy Carter once said, “We become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams.”

When we support and stand for each other, we are adding to that art. Ahmed Mohamed is just one, small part of that mosaic.