Author Archives: Arab America

Hoda Kotb is the first to admit she has some serious hair struggles.
Yes, most hats she tries on during the fourth hour of the Today show don’t exactly fit her. And no, booze can’t be the reason behind those wacky childhood photos viewers know far too well. Instead, the morning show host has always had some tricky hair that doesn’t exactly wow in the early morning hours.
“I was always the kid with the crazy, frizzy hair and everyone else didn’t have it,” she explained to Today.com. “Throughout school, I was always fighting it. You had to, like, shellac it down.” 
Fast-forward to 2015 and Kotb finally has a routine that works for her. She does, however, have to give credit to a very special person.

Source: fr.eonline.com

Simerg’s companion photo blogsite, Simergphotos features an interesting collection of prints, photographs and images at the US Library of Congress on Islam and the Muslim World,  including a portra…

Source: ismailimail.wordpress.com

The Downtown Contemporary Arts Festival will kick off on March 19, and last until April 9, and is scheduled to include Performing Arts, Music, Film, Visual Arts, Urban Visions, and Special Events.

The festival, under the direction of Ahmed el-Attar, includes a diverse performing arts program; on April 6 American company Homer’s Coat will perform “An Iliad” – based on Homer’s Iliad and starring Denis O’Hare at the Falaki Theatre. A talkback with the actor will take place on April 6 at the venue, according to an event news release.

The festival also includes a dance and music program including a wide range of artists, from ‘The Library’ (France/Egypt), taking place at the GrEEK Campus’ Library Building and asks visitors to select a ‘book’, personified by a person, who will then proceed to tell their individual story through dance, and rapper ABYUSIF (Egypt), MC and musician, Boikutt (Palestine/USA), and producer ISMAEL. (Egypt), “who collectively perform rap, hip-hop, and electronic music, mixed with noise and sampled materials.”

Source: www.thecairopost.com

ARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt — Onstage in a cavernous conference hall on Sunday, a group of grinning and squealing teenagers took selfies with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. A screen wrapped around the back of the stage, showing mock-ups of a skyline of glittering golden towers. On either side of the stage, two screens shaped like the maps of Egypt displayed Sisi’s face as he attempted to smile modestly, a slight tear in his eye as he mugged for the cameras. This was his moment, a time to rake in the cash for the “new Egypt” he has been building since he took over the country in a coup in July 2013.

After a few minutes of cheering, Sisi managed quiet the enthusiastic audience and begin his closing speech to Egypt’s Economic Development Conference. The conference was a three-day bid to secure foreign investment. Sis was never short on rhetoric: “Some people thought my country is dead,” the general-turned-president said, patting the podium. “No, Egypt is a survivor…. 7000 years ago Egypt offered civilization to the whole globe. It’s there in history books. I’m not going to say why Egypt did not stay the course, but I just wanted to say that this state is waking up now.” The speech ended the way it began, with many in the audience shouting “Long live Egypt!” and punching the air as they offered Sisi a long standing ovation.

Source: foreignpolicy.com

Rosemary Sayigh America’s recent veto of the Lebanese government’s complaint to the Security Council regarding Israel’s oppressive practices against civilians in occupied South Lebanon points once again to the hypocrisy of President Reagan’s crusade for human rights in Poland, Afghanistan, and selected Latin-American states, while upholding Israel’s conversion of South Lebanon into a liberated zone … Continued

Why is Gaza not an issue in Israel’s elections? Filmmakers Tamar Glezerman and Arianna LaPenne speak with +972 bloggers to examine the mainstream media landscape, and its marginalization of the Palestinians, the occupation and the war in Gaza.Shot during Operation Protective Edge, this short documentary follows independent writers and photojournalists as they cover one of … Continued

“Cuckoo.” “Nanoush.” These are but a few of the names that, according to a daring animated film based on real interviews, Syrian women give to their vaginas. This is the work of Estayqazat, a self-described online Syrian feminist movement focusing on the body, sex and sexuality of Syrian women. With a name that translates to … Continued

When ISIS militants beheaded 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians in February, the dusty village of Al-Aour, about 150 miles south of Cairo, was particularly hard hit. Thirteen of the victims came from there, having traveled to Libya in hopes of making money to improve the lives of their families back home. In the days after graphic … Continued

Author: Porton, Richard ProQuest document link Abstract: Porton interviews Palestinian filmmaker and actor Elia Suleiman. Among other things, Suleiman discusses the nature of Palestinian identity, the history of the state of Israel, his “conceptually Jewish” humor, and his admiration for Primo Levi and Walter Benjamin. Full text: Invoking the work of the Palestinian poet Mahmoud … Continued

Ahmed Charai Ahmed Charai is publisher of the Moroccan weekly magazine L’Observateur as well as the French edition of the Foreign Policy magazine. He sits on the board of Trustees of the Foreign Policy Research Institute and The Advisory Borad of the Center for … Dakhla, Morocco – Widely circulating in Morocco via YouTube at … Continued

Prep  Time:  20  Minutes Cook  Time:  10  Minutes   “It’s  easy  to  make  your  own  falafel!  Mashed  chickpeas  are  combined  with  onion,  bread crumbs,  egg,  and  herbs,  and  fried  until  browned  and  crisp.  Serve  in  pita  halves  topped with  chopped  tomatoes  and  cucumber  sauce.” INGREDIENTS: For  Sauce: 1  (6  ounce)  container  plain  yogurt 1/2  cucumber … Continued

By Habeeb Salloum Abû al-Walîd Muhammad Ibn Rushd, better known in the West as Averroës, but also in medieval times as Avén Ruiz and Averrhoes, was born in 1126 A.D. in Cordova, once the illustrious capital of Moorish Spain. The descendant of a distinguished Cordovan family of scholars, he was the third generation of his … Continued