Ramy — The show I didn’t know I needed.
I am a millennial but I am not a Muslim. Yet, I still identify with Ramy Youssef.
For the last couple of years, I have been thinking about my identity and my space in the States. While Ramy’s storyline is completely different than mine, our identity struggles are a lot similar. As a first-generation Mexican-American born in the United States, I too am a Ramy.
The Episodes.
In the Hulu Television Series “Ramy,” the main character Ramy Hassan is a first-generation Egyptian-American who struggles with being a part of a Muslim community in a millennial generation.
Every episode of this show is a glimpse into a different struggle as a millennial Muslim, each a story about how Ramy grew up or an event that causes him to contradict his Muslim identity.
Watching Do the Ramadan (S1E5) reminded me of the times I really wanted to do Lent. Like, really do it this time. Throughout the road of any inherited religious practice, life is different when you’re navigating how you make it fit into your millennial world. Like Ramy, my faith is strong. Like Ramy, I struggle with some religious practices. Like Ramy, I am human.
Strawberries (S1E4) opened my eyes to a new perspective. An event my identity was never tied to, yet I still felt empathy. When you’re in the middle of puberty, identity isn’t something most Americans need to figure out. For Ramy, it was something he was forced to deal with at the same time. Looking back, I realized how privileged I was not needing to figure both out at that age.
I saw my mother in Ne Me Quitte Pas (S1E7) and parts of myself in Refugees (S1E6). At the end of Saving Mikaela (S1E8), Ramy’s grandparents left a voice memo on a cassette that captured the word I had been searching for in my identity journey — confused.
I need more.
I discovered this show through sponsored ads on my Instagram feed, the new millennial norm. #TargetedAF. I checked Hulu once a week to see when it was on. For some reason, I really wanted to watch this. After watching the first episode, I was instantly drawn in. “Ramy” turned out to be the show I didn’t know I needed.
It’s shows like these that bridge the lonely gap of the first-generation identity. I craved it without even realizing that I did. It moved me. It shook me. It made me want to talk about it. What I thought was a lonely island all this time, turned out to be something bigger that could cross cultures other than my own.
I want these stories to open up the lines of communication we often forget exist. I want stories like these to bring us together as we search for our own meaning and define what it means to be a millennial with immigrant parents. I want stories like these to make people feel less alone on their spiritual journies, and remind us that we can be both millennial and faithful. I want more shows like this, shows that encourage me to add my own story to the conversation.
