What does it mean to be an Arab-American Journalist?
As a student, just stepping into the world of reporting, I have to ask myself the question: "What does it mean to be an Arab-American Journalist?"
So I came up with an answer.
I define myself as an Arab-American
Muslim. So what does this have to do with journalism?
To me, in a place and time where
Arabs and Muslims were thrown into the spotlight and completely misunderstood,
it has everything to do with journalism. At this time, I've started to truly
realize how much Arabs and Muslims are needed in Journalism.
Being a history major, I look at
history first in order to understand today's events in context.
Since I am connected with my
identity as an Arab-American, the history
of Arabs in America becomes increasingly relevant to my daily life. There are lessons
to be learned from both aspects.
When minorities first come to the US, they are discriminated against - any
minorities and all minorities.
Take, for example, African Americans.
There were young African American youth that were doing everything they
could to be like White Americans - to the point of changing their hair or
trying to lighten their skin. Before groups like Marcus Garvey and the Nation
of Islam (NOI) as well as other groups which helped shape the identity of
African Americans in this country, many African Americans were not proud of
their skin color because of pressure from society.
One example is the movie of Malcolm X: there's a scene where the young Malcolm
X goes and does a "conk", where he straightens out his hair.
This, to me, is the ultimate form of denying your culture and degrading
yourself.
When African Americans at the time
were not proud of themselves, they were looked down upon. When African
Americans started to unite and be proud of their culture and heritage, they
were respected and the level of their status in society started to rise. Not to
say that they are where they want to be... it's still a long way to, but at
least the key way to get there was found to be to "respect yourself."
This lesson teaches us that people who are proud of who they are and
their culture, and don't try to water it down, forces others to respect you for
who you are.
So learning Arabic if I don't know it, understanding Arab music, art, and the Arab mentality is important before I walk around and claim myself to be an Arab.
Too often, I see Arabs who have grown up in a neighborhood and went to school their whole lives without seeing any other Arabs, forgetting their language, not know anything about where they or their parents and grandparents came from and still claim to be the example for all Arabs because occasionally they eat hummos.
I'm not saying those whose parents didn't teach them Arabic or Arab culture are to blame, my point is don't water down or claim that being American is better than being Arab or vice versa.
Being Arab and American are two identities intertwined. I cannot be one
without the other. As a journalist, when I am proud of who I am, I
educate myself about Arab history, American history, and history of Arabs in
America.
Once someone at least realizes that understanding the history and background of their identity, they can report on Arab-American stories much better and within
context.