Texas 9th-Grader Makes Clock to Show Engineering Teacher, Gets Arrested for Making a 'Bomb'
Ahmed Mohamed, a ninth-grader in Irving, Texas is an engineering whiz. For fun, he makes workable gadgets and rudimentary electronics. Basically, he is what we dream an American ninth-grader will be in 2015, as our nation lags behind the world in math and science education.
Ahmed wanted to show his engineering teacher what he was capable of, so he brought a homemade electronic clock to school. What should have been a beautiful moment of congratulatory pride quickly turned into a full-fledged nightmare for Ahmed. His English teacher, who decided the clock looked like a bomb, notified the principal, who called campus police, who called the county police. They interrogated Ahmed, arrested him on the spot, and took him to jail.
Ahmed is a ninth-grader in a NASA shirt and the clock, which anyone could see was not attached to any explosives of any kind, was harmless. He never pretended the clock was a bomb or told anyone it was a bomb.Â
This story is a despicable case of Islamophobia and will forever impact this young man's life. Below, hear Ahmed in his own words and see a picture that was snapped when he was arrested and put in handcuffs at the school.
