Arab Americans

There are many misconceptions regarding Islam and Muslims. In reality most Muslims are non-Arabs and most live outside the Middle East. There are five million Muslims in the United States. There are an estimated 10,000-15,000 Muslims in the area.

Like other ethnic minority groups in America, Arab Americans face daily challenges in their overall development and well-being. These challenges take the form of discrimination, stereotyping, and general negative reactions to them as an ethnic group.

* Just because you are Arab does not define you as being a follower of Islam.

Coming from an Arab American household, there has always been an emphasis on higher education and higher socio economic status. I believe that it is something that can be found in various Arab American Communities in the United States and these standards set in the household show when you look at the statistics as to where Arab Americans stand on both educational and socio economical scales. This paper will look into the history of Arabs in the United States, as well as the demographics of the Arab community in the U.S, and cultural and physiological backings that may all have influence on education. My goal for this research paper is to find the reasons behind the Arab American strive for education and socioeconomic success and whether the Arab culture has a positive or negative influence on the success of Arab Americans.

Arab Americans are defined primarily of their religious identity and they reside in all 50 states. The first generation of immigrants from the Middle East dates back to late 1800s. The majority of immigrants’ population came from Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan. Religion plays an important role in the Arab society and most of their way of life is not necessary because of their religion. Like many other immigrants, the reason these immigrants migrated to the United States was to escape the religious persecution, an opportunity to build a better life. Majority of how Arabs interact and the way their culture is has to do with the Koran and it is one of the foundations of Islamic law. In the Arab American culture, family is an important aspect and everyone plays their respective role. Fathers are the head of the households and are expected to provide for his wife and children. The women has restrictive education and they help support the family by caring for the house. Kids take on a role are taught by their parents depending on their gender. Boys are most likely to follow the footsteps of the father to prepare to care for his own family one day. The girls learn the basics of running a household. It is common for the children to live with their parents until they marry or live with them to care for them as they age and can no longer care for themselves. The Arab culture also value respecting the elders and they are often the decision makers in the family. The family

The African American journey has been one of trials and tribulations which they suffered greatly to achieve freedom and success. The battle has led the citizens of this nation to have witnessed the first African American President of the United States. The journey that has brought African Americans to the present situation has seen intermittent successes and numerous setbacks. Perseverance from many generations has brought about a gradual but progressive change. The journey begun in a state of slavery, through the act of slavery racism was seen in

For many Arab American immigrants and their descendant’s it is often difficult to find a balance between adapting to a new culture while retaining their traditional culture. Most Arab

I used to think that all people and countries speak Arabic language because I born in Arabic country “Yemen”. I didn’t know anyone that speaks different language or even speak different accents of Arabic. The school that I went to they didn’t teach English language. The education in Yemen is not very good like in the United States or as in the other Arab countries. For that reason, I face a lot of obstacles when I came to the United States with both the Arabic accents and the English language. Believe me a lot of things that happened to me that you will never imagine it, so here where my story begins.

It is important to address the stereotypes of Middle Easterners that may have been learned from the culture in the United States (U.S.). There is a difference between Arab Americans and those that were born and remain in the Middle East. However, it the stereotypes of the Arab American is addressed, it will make the transition to understanding

Arab people stem from many different regions including 22 countries: Algeria, Bahrain, the Comoros Islands, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen ("Arab American," 2014). The Arab culture include several ethnicities such as Shias, Sunni, Druze, Ismalites, and Nusayr (Matusiak, 2013). It is important to know Arabs are not a race, but a diverse culture ("Facts about Arabs," 2014). The Arab people are measured as being among the “most educated” population with a higher percentage of college educations than the American population (Matusiak, 2013). Family is important in the Arab culture. Many Arabs live within close proximity of family and have close relationships ("Arab American," 2014).

Despite the fact that there are some cultural similarities which are common within this group, Middle Eastern Americans vary in a number of significant ways. Some identify themselves by the general term “Arab” American, but the majority prefer to identify with the nation their ancestors came from; the four largest national groups are Egyptian, Lebanese, Syrian and Iranian (Healey, 2014). In fact, although the group as a whole contains a large portion of individuals with Arabic backgrounds, but some groups, such as the Iranians, have Persian ethnicity instead. Middle Eastern Americans also vary in religion, but nearly 70% of recent immigrants are Muslim and collectively they make up the majority of the American

In 1900, the world was made up of 12.3 % Muslims. In 2010, The number rose to 22.5% making Islam the fastest growing religion in the entire world, exceeding even the growth rate of Christianity. The American Muslim Council has estimated that there are 2,000 mosques and Islamic community centers in the United States. More than 80% percent have been built in the past 12 years.

To even begin to delve into our topic, we must first define the following terms: Arab, Muslim and Middle East. Millions of the people that fall into these categories live in the United States, yet we hardly take the time to learn to differentiate between them thanks to the negative connotations that are associated with each of these terms (Chin, 2009).

385 million people. 13 million square kilometers. 22 Countries. Significant numbers that represent the population, the surface area, and the number of countries of the Arab world respectively, and yet they all speak one language. The aforementioned surprisingly does not imply that all Arabs are the same. Lebanon and the UAE are two countries belonging to the Arab world, they both share one language which is Arabic with some differences in the accent. Lebanon is known for its relaxed laws, extensive history, and corrupt government. UAE is known for its wealth, development, and traditions. In spite of the fact that these two countries speak one language, they have their similarities and differences when it comes to culture, law,

This survey reveals that the problem with the Islam faith is not racial: The Muslim people are welcomed, the Islam faith is not. The violence that has been perpetrated against America, whether executed or planned, has brought to fruition religious persecution not seen since the persecution of the Jews in W.W.II. This “trust no Arab” attitude has brought shame to the Constitutional intentions of freedom of religion intended by our forefathers, and has set religious tolerance back 200 years. Looking at media representation of Muslim Americans prior to 9-11, it shows religious diversity in America, depicting Muslim America as just another religious community seeking to advance and protect their interests, not unlike other Americans. After 9-11 the media portrayed representations of threat and fear, creating boundaries between Muslims and other Americans. Such depiction transforms the identity of Muslims and American religious pluralism (Byng, M. pg. 3).