I am an American We are One Nation

Each week, we introduce you to an exceptional American who unites, rather than divides, our communities. Huda Shalabi’s dream is to become the first hijab-wearing Muslim woman to work as a police officer in Paterson, N.J.

Each week, this series will introduce you to an exceptional American who unites, rather than divides, our communities. To read more about Americans doing exceptional things, visit onenation.usatoday.com.

While some 20-year-olds might profess hesitation or bewilderment at the thought of what to do with their lives, Huda Shalabi stands out as one who knows her path exactly. She has been on it since she was 10 years old: She wants to serve her community, and also to represent it. Her dream is to become the first hijabwearing Muslim woman to work as a sworn police officer in her hometown of Paterson, N.J.

“It would mean the world to me, like I achieved something, that I’m unique, that I stand out,” she said. “I could be a role model to other Arab females in my community.”

Shalabi, who will soon graduate with a bachelor’s degree in national security with a specialization in homeland security from nearby Berkeley College, maintains she has had the itch for police work since

was a child, when she helped officers solve the caper of the missing marble cutting machine, which had been stolen from her family’s backyard.

One of the detectives arriving on the scene after the crime had been solved, thanks in part to Shalabi’s instincts and a mysterious trail of pink residue, told her: “You can be a detective, a cop, with a great mind like that.”

Shalabi took the advice to heart, and, 10 years later, she is well on her way to fulfilling the dream.

Last summer, she finished an internship at the Paterson Police Department, and next spring, as part of her studies at Berkeley, she is set to intern at the Passaic County Sheriff’s Department.

Shalabi, whose first name is Arabic for “guidance,” said the internship confirmed her career choice. She said she’s “always had a passion to help people” and wanted to “give back” to her comshe munity, where she grew up and went to school. In Shalabi’s case, that community is South Paterson, home to one of the largest Middle Eastern populations in the country

“You want to build trust,” she said, “and make sure people don’t feel singled out. I want to be able to reflect the community since it’s very diverse and now there is not one Arab-Muslim female officer wearing the hijab.”

Shalabi said she could see herself working in domestic violence cases and being an asset especially in cases where there are women who speak only Arabic and not English.

“Some of them sometime will put their head down,” she said, “and really not talk of the incident, and just listen to their male partners.”

Whatever role Shalabi assumes, whether in Paterson or on some other police force, she said she “would bring all 100 percent of me. Give it an all.”

“Public service means making a difference, giving back, basically,” she said. “It’s just been in me since I was a child.”