In 2017, the Arab America Foundation and Arab America launched an initiative to make National Arab American Heritage Month an official annual observance. Since then, the group of more than 250 Arab American volunteers in 28 states has been able to obtain proclamations recognizing Arab American Heritage Month at several levels of government. While a public law has not been passed on the federal level, there has been greater progress with the initiative. In both 2022 and 2023, President Biden recognized April as Arab American Heritage Month with a Presidential Proclamation. The President of the United States urged "all Americans to learn more about the history, culture, and achievements of Arab Americans and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities."
Arab America Foundation "National Arab American Heritage Month" Retrieved from: https://arabamericafoundation.org
The White House "A Proclamation on Arab American Heritage Month, 2023" Retrieved from https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions
"In US news and current events today, in the U.S., roughly 4 million Arab Americans can trace their roots to any of these countries. Arab Americans have been contributing to America since at least the 1870s. But we often get diminished to a terrorist or refugee image or just straight up ignored and it’s time to fix that. Here's why Arab American Heritage Month is more important than ever."
"When you look at Muslim scholar Dalia Mogahed, what do you see: A woman of faith? A scholar, a mom, a sister? Or an oppressed, brainwashed, potential terrorist? In this personal, powerful talk, Mogahed asks us, in this polarizing time, to fight negative perceptions of her faith in the media -- and to choose empathy over prejudice."
"An Arab American comedian shares his funny, heartfelt and eye-opening perspective home, growing up and where we are 'from from.' Amer is an Arab-American comedian, writer, and part-time law professor at the University of Detroit Mercy. He has produced comedy festivals in America and the Arab world, and he has performed throughout the world, including at the world-famous Kennedy Center in Washington, DC."
How Does It Feel to Be a Problem? by 
Becoming American: The Early Arab Immigrant Experience by 
America Made Me a Black Man: A Memoir by 
Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir by 
Arab & Arab American Feminisms: Gender, Violence, & Belonging by 
Arab American Youth: Discrimination, Development, and Educational Practice and Policy by 
Arab Detroit 9/11: Life in the Terror Decade by 
The Fox Hunt: A Memoir of Yemen and My Odyssey of America by 
Arab Routes: Pathways to Syrian California by 
Claiming Belonging: Muslim American Advocacy in an Era of Islamophobia by 
Homeland Insecurity: The Arab American and Muslim American Experience after 9/11 by 
However Tall the Mountain: A Dream, Eight Girls, and a Journey Home by 
Iranians in Texas: Migration, Politics, and Ethnic Identity by 
Islamophobia and Acts of Violence: The Targeting and Victimization of American Muslims by 
Palestinian Chicago: Identity in Exile by 
The Rise of the Arab American Left: Activists, Allies, and Their Fight Against Imperialism and Racism, 1960s-1980s by 
Snake Hips: Belly Dancing and How I Found True Love by 
This Muslim American Life: Dispatches from the War on Terror by 
I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir by 
Arab American Women: Representation and Refusal by "Jerry Stinnett talks about why Arab-American invisibility is an important issue and how universities can provide better resources for this growing group of individuals. Jeremiah (Jerry) Stinnett was born and raised in Del City, Oklahoma. He then received a Bachelor of Arts in Human Relations with a minor in English: Writing & Masters of Education in Adult and Higher Education with an emphasis in Student Affairs from the University of Oklahoma. He now works full-time for the office of Student Life Social Change at The Ohio State University. His work focuses on supporting low-income and marginalized communities by creating opportunities and access through education. During his studies at the University of Oklahoma, he worked with the implementation and facilitation of a Freshman Diversity Experience. He also served as a full time staff member for the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education in 2016, 2017, and 2018. While Jeremiah has many interest areas, his primary focus is advocating against the erasure of Arab-American identity and creating opportunity for deeper identity development."
