Author Archives: Arab America

Earlier this week, ADC was delighted to host a special community forum at Washington DC’s West End Cinema, in which cast members from the TLC reality television series All-American Muslim shared their thoughts with an enthusiastic and diverse audience about their experiences on the show. The event was also made available to viewers online through … Continued

Each time Uncle Sam ventures abroad he leaves an unfinished story, and nowhere is it most unfinished than the story of Iraq, where despite flowery speeches regarding freedom and sovereignty by the Obama administration, despite assurances that tyranny has been “cast aside,” the tragedy caused by the United States invasion, occupation and inevitable abandonment is … Continued

Following Rick Santorum’s sudden and unanticipated rise to prominence during the Iowa caucuses, there has been a rush to review the earlier and more obscure phase of his presidential campaign to see what newsworthy tidbits might have been overlooked when the spotlights were all shining on Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney. One of Santorum’s gems … Continued

    Playwright/attorney/new media journalist Wajahat Ali (Goat Milk Blog) made waves in 2009 when The Domestic Crusaders broke box office records during its Off Broadway premiere at New York’s famous Nuyorican Poets Cafe. When it appeared in the pages of McSweeney’s in 2010, it became one of the first plays about Muslim Americans to … Continued

“All-American Muslim,” the cable reality show that follows five Dearborn families, has helped change attitudes about Muslim-Americans, cast members said Wednesday night at a panel discussion here. Suehaila Amen, Bilal “Billy” Amen and Nina Bazzy, three people featured in the eight-part TLC cable network show, said they were happy they took part, despite criticism, including … Continued

On New Year’s day, All-American Muslim aired its strongest and most talked about episode to-date — a powerfully moving and nuanced look at the commemoration of 9/11 through the passionate eyes of the cast members and their greater Dearborn community. On December 31, Hollywood Reporter called All-American Muslim, ”groundbreaking”, “out-of-the-box programming”, andone of the best … Continued

Eleven-year-old Sy’Keirra English strides confidently to the front of the classroom and greets her teacher in his native language — Arabic. Atheed Azzet could not be more pleased. It has been three months, and the kids are grasping phrases that few of them had ever heard before he entered their lives. This tall, slim Iraqi … Continued

  Is Twitter aiding and abetting terrorism? The director of an Israeli legal outfit says yes, and is threatening to sue the micro-blogging site if it doesn’t change its policies. Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, director of the Shurat HaDin Israel Law Center, sent a letter to Twitter on Thursday asserting that the company is violating U.S. law … Continued

Tonight’s episode of TLC’s All-American Muslim focused on the 10th anniversary of 9/11. At the heart of the show was the Amen family’s debate over whether siblings Bilal and Shadia’s attendance at a commemoration ceremony was about them showing interfaith unity or feeling pressured to apologize for a horrible act they were not responsible for. … Continued

A television show about members of a Muslim community in Michigan is focusing what may be its second-to-last episode almost entirely on the conflicted feelings that its featured participants have about marking anniversaries of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The episode of TLC’s “All-American Muslim” airs Sunday (10 p.m.). The series attracted attention earlier this … Continued

The Iraq War may be officially over, but for thousands of Iraqis who fled to America during the conflict, there’s no going home. Many left successful careers to settle in Detroit, where finding their future is a challenge. The U.N. estimates several million Iraqis are now refugees — either inside Iraq or outside the country. … Continued