In a recent New York Times essay in the Modern Love column, Meher Ahmad writes about her struggles with interracial dating growing up in America as an ethnic Pakistani. She shares some compelling anecdotes in the process, but ultimately concludes that her mother was right about dating non-Pakistanis. Of her and her boyfriend, she writes, "we wouldn’t have the relationship we have if he weren’t [brown]." To be completely honest, my first reaction to the article was surprise. I didn't think that the New York Times would print something that was against interracial dating. But her story is important because it highlights some important truths about a certain type of minority experience in the United States. One of the first major themes of the article is Ahmad's self-realization that her interest in white boys (or, later, non-brown men) was problematic. (Aside: I think the word "problematic" is a fun, versatile wrapper we use to bundle up problems that invo