Author Archives: Arab America

The Arab American Film Festival is sponsoring House of Lebanon “Beyond Borders” Film Screenings, to be featured during our 2014 “Beyond Borders” Art Exhibition Opening Reception weekend (Saturday, October 18, 5:00pm – 9:00pm and Sunday, October 19, 9:30am – 5:00pm). “Screening Lebanese and Arab films is one of “Beyond Borders” Art Exhibition highlights,” said Karen … Continued

One is the grand dame of the classical music world, with a 120-year history and legions of fans around the globe. The other is barely 6 years old, from a relatively new nation that the western world knows little about. But when the 99 musicians from the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra (QPO) take their places on … Continued

Theater artist Andrea Assaf has initiated an ambitious event series to impart awareness of Arab and Islamic American culture and identity. The University of South Florida will be undergoing a socio-cultural immersion that goes beyond language, food choices and taboos. Public events, many with free admission, will be taking place throughout 2014-15 as part of … Continued

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The reconstruction of the Gaza Strip will cost $7.8 billion, Palestinian experts said in a report Thursday, as the Palestinian labor minister said 100,000 jobs could be created in Gaza if Israel held to its promise to end its siege within the month. The Palestinian Economic Council for Development and Reconstruction, … Continued

Washington National Cathedral is pleased to partner with CARAVAN for the US premiere of this interfaith arts exhibit designed to build bridges of respect, understanding, and sharing between the creeds and cultures of the East and West. The exhibition features 48 fiberglass sculptures in prayer painted by 30 Muslim and Christian Egyptian artists and 18 … Continued

Top Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat met in Washington with US Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday to discuss Palestinian-Israeli relations and the latest developments in the region after Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip. Anadolu news agency quoted spokesperson of the US State Department Jen Psaki as saying that Kerry met with Erekat on … Continued

An Arab civil rights activist was attacked in Brooklyn Wednesday by a man who hurled slurs and threatened to behead her to “see how your people feel about it,” authorities and the victim said. Linda Sarsour, 34, director of the Arab American Association of New York, was leaving the group’s headquarters on Fifth Ave. in … Continued

Based on Lebanese-American author, artist and poet Kahlil Gibran’s writings, the much-anticipated animated film The Prophet includes eight of the 26 chapters in the original internationally acclaimed book of poetry. Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet’s early stages were written in Arabic before evolving and being published in English in 1923. Though Gibran spent half his life … Continued

Heather Raffo, <a href=”http://heatherraffo.com/about/”>http://heatherraffo.com/about/t</a>, knew she wanted to “make theater her life,” as early as elementary school. She eventually earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Literature from the University of Michigan, but a “life changing” visit to Iraq in 1993 reignited her passion for theater, returning it to the forefront. Raffo had been particularly … Continued

In the years since 9/11, the media has portrayed the Middle East, Arabs and Muslims in a particular light — a light that Andrea Assaf said lumps a diverse group of people into a negative stereotype based on war and conflict. Assaf, a USF artist-in-residence and artistic director of Art2Action Inc., aims to expand what … Continued

Arab fans are angry over Lady Gaga’s latest video message, a short video clip released ahead of her performance in Tel Aviv, in which she greets her fans with “Shalom.” “Shalom, Israel,” the American pop star said in the 10-second video. “I’m so excited to perform my new tour in Tel Aviv.” The performer’s manager … Continued

While some Arab countries saw political changes in 2011 – president Ben Ali was ousted from power after ruling Tunisia for 24 years, Hosni Mubarak was deposed after ruling Egypt for 30 years – many cultural and political boundaries still remain in place for artistic freedom. In 2012, Egyptian authorities censored a song from a … Continued