Three weeks ago, my fellow Coptic-Egyptian friend, Weinberg freshman George Mousa, and I administered an anonymous survey to the Northwestern community via social media about Middle Eastern and North African students at the University to gather statistics before creating a petition to send to Multicultural Student Affairs. The petition urges for the creation of an MSA branch with its own content expert and graduate student expert dedicated to MENA students at the University.
The first question on the survey was “Do you know of any Middle Eastern or North African students at Northwestern?” Out of 67 respondents, 80 percent answered “Yes.”When asked, “In your opinion, are Middle Eastern and North African students a minority at Northwestern?” 81 percent of respondents answered “Yes.”
The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com
Bahrain School, a champion of cultural and linguistic diversity, set out a program to highlight the contributions Arab Americans have made in education, medicine, technology, government, military service, and culture.
The school builds on the formal recognition of April as Arab American Heritage Month in marking the special occasion.
“This month, we celebrate the accomplishments of educators, writers, poets, and musicians who have promoted the Arab American heritage and pay tribute to their contributions to America’s rich diversity,” Middle High School Principal Shana Seawright said.
Teachers have prepared a set of contributions by Americans of Arab origin and shared them daily with the students and the staff during the morning announcements.
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April is Arab American Heritage Month, and it has been gratifying to see the supportive proclamations issued by dozens of states, local governments, and the even the State Department and the Democratic Party.
Given this level of recognition of our community’s contributions in government, art, sports, and business, one might be tempted to say that we should forget past hurts, rest on our laurels, and move on. Not so fast.
UCLA experts say it’s a positive step, but overcoming stereotypes will require more work
UCLA Delan Bruce |
April 29, 2021
On April 1, the U.S. Department of State for the first time announced it would formally recognize April as Arab American Heritage Month. Ned Price, spokesman for the State Department, noted that the contributions of Americans of Arab heritage to the nation are “as old as America itself.”
Though celebrated for years in many communities and schools, the federal government has yet to formally acknowledge the observance. On April 26, Michigan congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Debbie Dingell introduced the Arab American Heritage Month Resolution. The two were among a quartet of representatives who introduced a similar bill in April 2020.