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Local Arab-American Group Launches Take on Hate Anti-Bias Campaign
A new campaign by a Dearborn-based Arab-American group to combat bias kicks off tonight with a Ramadan dinner and movie screening.
Created by the National Network for Arab American Communities, the Take on Hate campaign aims to deal with misconceptions and stereotypes of Arab Americans and Muslims. From anti-Muslim comments made by some politicians to racist TV shows to unfair treatment by government officials, community leaders say that Arab Americans and Muslims still face bias almost 13 years after the Sept. 11 attacks.
“One of the challenges is changing perceptions,” said Rana Abbas, an official with ACCESS (formerly known as the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services), which created the National Network.
Those challenges were seen in a Pew survey released Wednesday that found that Americans view Muslims more negatively than any other religious group surveyed. On a scale of 0 to 100, with 100 being the most positive, Americans ranked Muslims as 40, the lowest of any group; in contrast, Americans viewed Jews as the most positive, ranking them as 63.
Leaders with the Take on Hate campaign plan to respond quickly when instances of anti-Arab bias spring up, but they also want to focus on education and prevention.
“We want to be more pro-active, to have an impact,” said Nadia Tonova, director of the National Network for Arab American Communities, a project of ACCESS. “We’re tired of always being reactive.”
Tonova said one plan they’re considering is helping educate students in Macomb County schools, which is seeing an influx of refugees from Iraq. Education can help lessen tensions as demographics change, said Tonova.
The National Network consists of 23 Arab-American groups in 11 states. On Tuesday, Tonova helped launch the New York part of the Take on Hate campaign in Bay Ridge, a neighborhood in Brooklyn with a sizable Arab-American population.
Niraj Warikoo
Detroit Free Press