Originally published by The Chicago Reporter. Living in Chicagoland while originally from the Middle East and North African (MENA) region, I am compelled to view police violence in Chicago through a global lens. This past week, the Chicago Alliance against Racist and Police Repression (CAARPR) released its report about the more than 600 individuals incarcerated …
Originally published by TRUTHOUT. TRUTHOUT—The U.S. is now more than 20 years beyond the Patriot Act of October 2001. The immediate aftermath of 9/11 brought a heavy U.S. state focus on Arabs and Muslims in the U.S., rationalizing an expansion of policing and surveillance activities against them. It also inspired the convergence of shared struggles …
20 Years After Patriot Act, Surveillance of Arabs and Muslims Is Relentless Read More »
Originally published by The Chicago Reporter The Chicago Reporter—Twenty years to the month after the US Congress passed the Patriot Act, Arab Americans continue to feel its devastating impact. The Patriot Act, and its successor, the USA Freedom Act, are backronyms that are Orwellian in their spin. The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate …
The Racism of the U.S.A. Patriot Act, Then and Now Read More »
The idea that anti-Arab and anti-Muslim racism started after September 11, 2001, is one thing many progressives get wrong. At least since the late 1970s, the U.S. government has been racially profiling Arab immigrant activists through surveillance and the corporate media has been portraying Arabs assavage misogynists. This racial profiling continued through the Clinton administration …
20 Years After 09/11, Anti-Arab Imperialist Racism Is Alive And Well Read More »
[The Chicago Reporter] In the short week since Kabul fell to the Taliban, the U.S. corporate media — and those who uncritically buy into it — are once again beating the drum that calls upon Western heroes to save Afghan women from Islamist extremism. While a New York Times headline reads, “Desperate Afghan Women Wait for U.S. Protection,” CNN sensationalizes the issue with shocking stories of the Taliban killing women.
THE CHICAGO REPORTER—On July 20, millions of Muslims across the U.S. celebrated Eid Al Adha, the Muslim Feast of the Sacrifice, commemorating Prophet Ibrahim’s faithfulness to God after being tested with the unfulfilled command to sacrifice his son. In Chicago, the Arab American Muslim families I know celebrated with feasts, prayers, and giving. They shared and distributed food with those in need. They visited cemeteries to share the celebration in the memory of departed loved ones. They drove across town or to nearby states like Michigan to celebrate with their extended family. Community organizations mobilized to support their constituents.
