“Standing in Solidarity”

In record time, filmmaker, social activist, journalist, all-around-badass Hena Ashraf produces a video exhibiting the scores of cross-cultural support by New Yorkers for the Egyptian people’s pro-democracy protests. #nycsolidarity #jan25

“Hooverian Nights” Part I

American Orientalism and presidential mockery at its finest. I was kinda feeling bad for Herbert Hoover’s Secretary of Interior and Treasury until realized that they got to be “sheiks” and “memlooks”

Excerpt from an article by Wallace Irwin (June 20, 1931) for The Saturday Evening Post. enjoy (I personally re-typed it from an original source):

“Herbi Hooveh was a Kalif
From the State where Kalifs grow—
Kalif-ornia I refer to.
Doubt this point, if you prefer to,
Yest I’ll stick to what I know.
Herbi Hooveh’s Kalifate
Covered many a savage state
From Alaska’s frozen spots
To Miami’s vacant lots.

Tunisia and American social media

Almost a year ago, I started a post about revolutionary regime change in the Arab world writing, “The domino effect starts with the largest and one of the most politically corrupt nations in this culturally geographically designated (Arab) “world.” Prescient? Only if I wasn’t talking about Egypt. Tunisian unrest over unemployment, economic disparity and autocratic corruption (is there any other kind?) was far from my mind, and many others unfamiliar with the former French colony’s struggles with 23 year-ruling president Ben Ali. But yesterday, Tunisia and the people of Tunisia appeared to be on the minds and status updates of many who also commemorated the day’s historic popular uprising by switching their profile picture to the flag of Tunisia. Below are some that appeared on my newsfeed. I start out with my favorite of the round-up:

“Can someone please do that again, except in Egypt?”
-Haroon Moghul

You Know You Live In An Arab Household…

When this is a staple on your dinner table next to the salt and pepper shaker:

Eid Mubarak and Hajj Mabruk!

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The Boston Globe is at it again with their pictorial coverage of Islam’s most celebrated rituals! The traditional prerequisite shots of pilgrims circling the Kaaba creating a blurred photo-effect are augmented with plentiful photos of Muslims climbing to and praying at Mount Arafat, Noor Mountain Zamzam water collection systems, modernized campsite accommodations, Saudi military parade stills, and an inside view into a new light-rail metro line.

Arab Americans Lead Wolverines to First-ever Win

Call me an ethno-centrist-one-generation-removed, but I love seeing names like “Saad” and “Meram” hit the sports recap news cycle—especially since Arab American athletes are either far removed publicly from their cultural and religious heritage or, for the simple fact that they have yet to become prominent fixtures in the American professional athlete landscape.

This past Sunday, University of Michigan’s Saad brothers (Freshman Sonny and Sophomore Hamoody) and Senior Justin Meram led their school to a 4-1 victory over Penn State, marking the first time the Wolverines captured a Big Ten tournament title in soccer. Another notable landmark possibly overlooked by the sports-obsessed Michigan culture, all goals made that day by the Wolverines came from Arab Americans!

An Open Letter to ABC’s 20/20 regarding “Islam: Questions and Answers”

In light of the highly problematic portrayal of Muslims in ABC’s 20/20 September 29, 2010 episode “Islam: Questions and Answers,” a colleague of mine, Margari Hill (who is also an amazing blogger in her own right), and I wrote an open letter to the production team of the program. If you are interested in supporting this effort and endorsing this letter, please click on the link here to fill out the requested information and share with others who shared similar sentiments about the episode.

An Open Letter to ABC’s 20/20 regarding “Islam: Questions and Answers” Season 31, Episode 3

MSAS: Arabic Cultural Language Trivia

Upon my trip to Syria this past summer, I was disheartened to discover that this legume was no regular fis-toe; that it in fact had a special name. Can you guess what that name was and the story of the historical origins of that name? And even better, can you suggest a replacement for that name!

Give Thanks

Shot in Abu Dhabi, Cairo, Jeddah, San Francisco, Chicago, Montreal, London, Sydney, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Dubai—with some notable faces from the Muslim global community (let’s see how many you can spot)—multi-media visual artist (that’s the most general label I could get construct to include such talents as photography, film-making, editing and graphic design under one umbrella) Ridwan Adhami produces this ocularly stunning music video (I mean it doesn’t hurt that we do have some mighty fine lookers in the community) for Iraqi-Canadian artist the the Narcicyst’s “Hamdulillah” featuring Pali-Brit, best known as “The first lady of arabic hip hop,” Shadia Mansour. The song is a latest single of his new release “The Narcicyst” LP.

The Right-wing Sensationalists’ handbook to incriminating any Muslim (or a “Modern-day Morisco”)

1. Whether it be an American beauty pagent winner or any MSA student, connect _______ Muslim to one of the following: Hamas, Iran, Hezbollah, IHH, Muslim Brotherhood, Al-Qaeda, Bin Laden family, Palestinians, Mexicans, Hugo Chavez, or Allah. See the following example (here)

2. Acceptable responses to “What is wrong with Muslims anyway?”: