Humanities Summer Program Spotlight:

Institute Explores the Arab American Experience

From June 19-25, Ohio educators and Ohio State graduate students gathered on campus for a summer institute on "Arab American Family Immigration Sagas" led by Professor Sabra Webber. Funded by the Ohio Humanities Council with several OSU sponsors, including the College of Humanities, the institute’s goal was to provide an opportunity for current and future middle and high school teachers to gain a better understanding of the Arab American experience and to take that understanding back to their classrooms.

According to Webber, who shares a joint appointment in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures and the Department of Comparative Studies, a large number of recent immigrants to Ohio, including many Somali, Yemeni and Sudanese immigrants, are Arab or from countries that are members of the Arab League. Other long-time Arab American residents in the Midwest are from Greater Syria (Lebanon, Syria, pre-1948 Palestine or the occupied territories, and Jordan) or from North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt). More and more are arriving from the Gulf States and other areas of the Arabian Peninsula.

At the same time that the Arab population in Ohio and throughout the U.S. is growing, negative attitudes toward Arab and Muslims since 9/11 have increased, in part because most citizens have little knowledge of the Arab world. Much that is "known" is either of a romantic nature or consists of a string of negative images about oil shortages and terrorists. "The Arab American Family Immigration Sagas institute was designed to address these gaps and misconceptions in public knowledge since educators are in the best position to expand minds," said Webber.

The institute used family immigration narratives found in literature, film, and video to address the challenges faced by the new (or newly noticed) student populations and by teachers striving to effectively teach non-Arab students about the Arab world.

Participants heard from prominent folklorists and scholars including Dr. Alan Jabbour, former director of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress (1976-1990), who spoke about "The Documentary Century." They also visited three sites in Dearborn, Michigan, including the Arab American National Museum, the new Islamic Center of America, and a Lutheran Arab church. The educators left with a deepened understanding of the "causes of and solutions to" the kinds of racial and ethnic issues that Arabs are facing and have faced in the United States.