Naeem used to be a good kid. He used to do his homework, get
decent grades, and help out around the house and store, until he started to hang with the
wrong people. Person really, Ibrahim. Ibrahim was a loner, a pathological liar,
and willing to get his friend into trouble without a second thought. One day,
it goes too far and Naeem gets into some real trouble. The police take
advantage of the situation, a Bangladeshi boy in a spot of trouble without anyone to help him. Naeem doesn’t want to, but the cops make it sound like he is in
so much trouble and they can make it all disappear if he will just let them
know what is going on in his neighborhood. Which of his neighbors might be of
interest to the police. Plus, they promise to pay him for his skills and the
tidbits he can share! Nothing wrong with telling that right?
As he gets into his job, Naeem starts to feel some pride in
what he’s doing and the money he brings in really makes a difference to his
family. Life starts to get better, his parents seem younger and more interested in new possibilities. But, as his police contacts start to push for more, he really starts to
question if what he is doing – going from being watched to watching - is really the right thing to do.
This is a very timely story. One never really knows who is
watching as each and every one of us (though obviously some are watched more than others)
move through our lives.
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