April has only been recognized officially as Arab American Heritage Month for a few years. Although the United States is home to over 2 million Arab Americans, efforts to establish a heritage month were not successful until 2021. To learn more about the Arab America Foundation, a group of dedicated organizers responsible for founding the month, visit their site here: https://arabamericafoundation.org/
The National Endowment for the Humanities has funded research collecting the history of Arab American experience in communities across the country. We include archival material below from the Arab American National Museum and encourage you to explore their website. For reading suggestions, visit our library display or the Bridging Cultures Bookshelf: Muslim Journeys website, both of which are excellent starting points to delve into the Arab American literary world.
Among the Arab American National Museum's collections are oral histories of families. We include two here, but encourage you to browse the collection yourself.
Oral history interview with Dr. Anis Ajluni, discussing his life and career with wife Clare Ajluni. Both survived the 1948 Nakba in Palestine.
Video interview with retired US magistrate judge Mona Mazjoub including discussion about her life, career, and family. Mazjoub has donated heirloom Lebanese textiles to the AANM.
Mona Majzoub-Full Oral History Interview from Arab American National Museum on Vimeo.
The Library of Congress has many historical photographs in their 'free to use and reuse' library. Here are a few snapshots of Arab American life over the years.
1901 self-portrait of Zaida Ben Yusuf, Algerian-German-American photographer
1916 Syrian street food vendor in New York City (courtesy Bain News Service)
PBS has a page collecting some of the Arab American-focused programming they've done over the years. Here's one of their documentaries, Arab Indianapolis: A Hidden History.
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