Transcript ARAB AMERICAN EXPERIENCE

ARAB
AMERICAN
EXPERIENCE
OVERVIEW
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Definition of an Arab American
Identify Arab American Demographics
Arab American immigration
Arab American cultural norms
Identify the five pillars of Islam
Definition of Muslim
Sources of Anti-Arab sentiment in the U.S.
Contemporary Arab American Issues
DEFINITION
ARAB AMERICAN is the term given to persons
who immigrated to the United States from a group
of independent nation-states in North Africa and the
Middle East. They have a common linguistic and cultural
heritage that has been shaped primarily by the religions
of Islam and Christianity.
ARAB AMERICAN
DEMOGRAPHICS
• Population
– Over 3 million, some estimate nearly 5 million
• Religious Affiliation
– majority (70%) have a Christian affiliation
– Muslim/Islamic affiliation (30%)
• Geographic Distribution
– the area’s where the majority have settled includes:
• New York, Los Angles, San Francisco, Detroit, Washington DC,
Houston, Chicago, and Jacksonville
ARAB AMERICAN
IMMIGRATION
• Early Immigration (1886-1914)
• Between World War I and World War II
(1915-1945)
• The later immigration period
EARLY IMMIGRATION
PERIOD (1886-1914)
• A majority of Arab immigrants came from greater Syria, Lebanon,
Palestine, Jordan, and occasionally Iraq.
• Reasons for immigration included, a neglect for the Christian
religion, the draft, a bloody war between religions, and the fact that
American Christian missionaries were active among the Syrian
Christians who built hospitals, schools and churches which left a
favorable impression on America. Many eventually lost their
Islamic Identity as time went by.
• Most of these immigrants were poor, uneducated, and looking for
new opportunities. They had a big distaste for indoor factory work,
many chose door to door peddling and often made sufficient
money to send for family members. There were many working as
slaves on plantations. Eventually many opened MOM and POP
type stores.
BETWEEN WWI AND WWII
(1915-1945)
• During this period, The United States Congress passed
legislation that restricted immigration. These laws had an
effect of slowing the movement of Arab Americans into the
country
THE LATER IMMIGRATION
PERIOD (1946 -)
• Most of these Arab immigrants came from Egypt, Iran,
and Palestine .
• Major reason for immigration was to study in our
universities and many decided to stay .
• Most of these immigrants were largely educated,
professional, and of the Muslim faith. Most of this group
has been able to retain more of their culture and religion
unlike the earlier immigrants.
• While the earlier immigrants found it easier and
desirable to fully assimilate into the American
mainstream, the newer arrivals seem more prone to
retain their Arab culture.
ARAB AMERICAN
CULTURAL NORMS
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Values and beliefs
Basic Arab self-perceptions
Concept of Friendship
Concept of Fatalism
Men and Women
Status of Women
Social Class System
Role of the Family
VALUES AND BELIEFS
• Basic Arab Values:
– Dignity, Honor, and reputation are of paramount importance to an
Arab. Typically an Arab will deport himself/herself in such a way as
to create a good impression.
– Loyalty to the family takes precedence over all personal needs
– Piety (devotion to religion) is one of the most admirable
characteristics.
– There is no separation between church and state in many Arab
Nations. Religion is taught in schools and promoted by the
Government.
– Religion is a way of life in both waves of immigration
BASIC ARAB SELFPERCEPTIONS
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Arabs are generous, humanitarian, polite, and loyal.
Have a rich cultural heritage.
Clearly defined cultural group i.e., “Arab Nation”.
Have been victimized by the West.
Arabs are misunderstood in the West.
CONCEPT OF FRIENDSHIP
• Concept of “save face”, let the other party find their
own way out of a situation
• You should never refuse a request from a friend
• Introductions:
– social status is discussed at some length
– social connections are very important
– interested in family background and social connections
before decision to become friends
• Business Relationships:
– a good personal relationship is the most important single
factor in doing business with Arabs, Americans
traditionally want to get right down to business. This style
will not bring success
CONCEPT OF FRIENDSHIP
cont...
• Criticism:
– Forthright criticism is always almost taken as personal
and destructive
– It is important to avoid direct and frank criticism.
– Tact must be employed to protect the other persons public
image, and avoid insult
CONCEPT OF FATALISM
• In the West we generally believe humans have the
right to control their environment and their destiny.
• Arabs do not believe in this Ideology.
• In fact, too much self-confidence may be interpreted
as blasphemy.
• This can sometimes enable Arabs to assert when
they fail that they were not at fault - rather, it was
“God’s will”
MEN AND WOMEN
• Accuracy of statements concerning the relationship
between men and women will vary based on the
country discussed. Saudi Arabia is the most
conservative
• As a general rule women interact freely only with
other women and very close male relatives. Women
and men are never alone together even for a short
period of time
• As a foreigner, if you are seen to be too familiar with
someone of the opposite sex you will lose respect.
MEN AND WOMEN cont...
• The public display of intimacy between men and
women is strictly forbidden by the Arab social code
• This code also applies to husbands and wives
• The maintenance of family honor is one of the
highest values in Arab society.
• In Arab cultures, misbehavior by women can do
more damage to family honor than misbehavior by
men
THE STATUS OF WOMEN
• Statements here vary in applicability depending on
the country involved. For instance, in Lebanon,
Jordan, and Egypt, educated women have been very
active at all levels of society.
• In the Persian Gulf States, most women do not work.
Those who do, work only in all-female
environments such as schools and banks for women,
except those in the medical profession
• Some changes in the work aspect are changing
• Typically, women's focus is in the house
• Traditionally-oriented men and women don’t see
prevailing customs as restrictive-rather as protection
• Western women are allowed some leeway
SOCIAL CLASS SYSTEM
• Four basic social classes in the Arab world:
– Upper class: Royalty and Wealthy
– Middle class: Govt.. workers, military officers, teachers
and merchants
– Lower class: peasant farmers, urban and village poor
– Nomadic Bedouins: typically admired for preserving Arab
traditions, move from place to place
• Western foreigners are usually considered upper
• Not much tension between classes due to Arabs
seeing their position determines by fate (Allah)
• Upper class do not perform manual labor in public,
and do not socialize with lower class
THE ROLE OF THE FAMILY
• Family loyalty and obligation take precedence over
loyalty to friends or the demand of a job
• Family is seen as a persons ultimate refuge
• In all cases, one must defend the honor of family
members, even if you hate them or think they are
wrong
• Arab man head of the household
• Wife operates behind the scenes
• Children are taught profound respect for adults
THE ROLE OF THE FAMILY
cont..
• Marriage
– Most Arabs still prefer arranged marriages
– This is done to keep dowry within the family
– The family always plays a major role in the decision of
any member to wed
• Polygamy
– is becoming rare
– can be married to more than one women, but everyone is
equal, no one gets anymore than the other
• Divorce
– Is very controlled, must pay substantially to the wife,
must be asked three times in a public place w/witnesses
RELIGION AND SOCIETY
• Religious toleration
– Arabs truly believe in religion
– Do not have any tolerance for atheists or agnostics
• People of the book
– Mohammed is believed to be the last in a long line of
prophets sent from God which includes Jesus
– Respect other prophets as well
– Respect all faiths
RELIGION AND SOCIETY
cont..
• Koran
– Contains many of the same stories as the Bible
– Actual word of God given to Mohammed
• Two main sects of Islam are the Sunnis and the
Shiite
• Most Muslim Arabs belong to the Sunni sect
THE FIVE PILLARS OF
ISLAM
• These are the five basic tenets of the Islamic faith
– 1. FAITH There is only one God and Mohammed is the
messenger of God
– 2. PRAYER Prayer five times a day
– 3. THE ZAKAT Giving charity to poor 2.5% yearly
– 4. THE FAST Fasting during the month of Ramadan.
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar.
During Ramadan, Moslems do not eat, drink, or smoke
between sunrise and sunset. Purpose is to experience
hunger and deprivation and to perform acts of selfdiscipline, humility, and faith
– 5. PILGRIMAGE to Mecca at least once during ones
lifetime if it is not a financial hardship
DEFINITION OF MUSLIM
• Islam is not a new religion, both a religion and a
way of life
• The word Islam means submission and derives from
a word meaning peace
• Allah is the Arabic name for God
• Islam and Christianity have the same origins , with
Judaism they go back to the prophet Abraham and
their three prophets who are directly descended from
his sons Mohammed from the eldest, Ishmael,
Moses, and Jesus from Isaac
MUSLIM cont..
• Muslims believe in:
– In one unique, incomparable God
– In the angels created by him
– In the prophets through whom his revelations were
brought
– In the day of judgement and individual accountability for
actions
– In Gods complete authority over human destiny and in life
after death
– Gods final message to man was revealed to the prophet
Mohammed through Gabriel
MUSLIM cont..
• Fatalism: belief or attitude that events are fixed in
advance for all time in such a manner that human
beings are powerless to change them
• May become Muslim by simply saying “there is no
God apart from God, and Mohammed is the
messenger of God.”
• Koran:
– Record of exact words revealed by God through the Angel
Gabriel to the Prophet Mohammed. Memorized by
Mohammed and dictated to his companions. Not one word
of its 114 chapters has been changed over the last 14
centuries
MUSLIM cont..
• The Koran is the last revealed word of God, and is
the primary source of every Muslims faith and
practice
• Muslims respect and revere Jesus, and await his
second coming
• Muslims forbid the consumption of pig meat or any
kind of intoxicating drink
ANTI ARAB SENTIMENT IN
THE U. S.
• Political violence
– Extremists perceive their actions to be part of the wider
Arab-Israeli conflict with the struggle against the enemies
of Israel and the Jewish people as a whole. Actions are
ideologically motivated and premeditated.
• Xenophobia
– (pertaining to Arab Americans) Locally inspired hostility
and violence toward Arab Americans, Muslims, and
Middle Easterners and their institutions
• Jingoistic Racism
– A blend of knee jerk patriotism and home grown white
racism toward non-European, non-Christian, dark skinned
peoples, which is normally premeditated
CONTEMPORARY ARAB
AMERICAN ISSUES
• Targeted in airports/bombings
• Arab-Israeli conflict
– Of all the issues considered, this is the most important
– Perception that Arab Americans only support a Palestine
homeland and do not care about Israel
• American role in the Middle East
– Most Arab Americans feel the U.S. should continue to use
political influence to resolve issues in the Middle East
• Kuwait
– Arab Americans are in favor of the future democracy of
the Kuwaiti Government and for other Arab states as well
CONTEMPORARY ARAB
AMERICAN ISSUES cont..
• Discrimination in the U.S.
– The biggest concern of Arab Americans is the feeling, as a
whole, they are being discriminated against because of the
perception that terrorists are only Arabs. They feel they
are receiving the backlash of terrorism and of hostage
taking
SUMMARY
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Definition of an Arab American
Identify Arab American Demographics
Arab American immigration
Arab American cultural norms
Identify the five pillars of Islam
Definition of Muslim
Sources of Anti-Arab sentiment in the U.S.
Contemporary Arab American Issues