As an Arab-Canadian, I’m still searching for home

posted on: Oct 16, 2015

Our mother tongue is what connects us to a lost unity and a future one.

It has been five years since I came to Canada and became a citizen. Within these five years, my Arabic became exclusively the language of the household. Occasionally, I spoke the language with fellow Arabs, but English dominated.

I rarely wrote in Arabic and no longer gave it much thought. I was too busy trying to refine my English writing skills into a bullet form, sharp enough to hit the desired aim. And the aim was simple: to be part of a place.

My Arab cultural identity was taken for granted. Just like Canadians take for granted the values of “freedom” and “equality for all.” But there is always the risk that both of these things fall into a crisis.

CULTURAL IDENTITY CRISIS

The rights, freedoms and laws that Canada offers and protects, creates a nation that embraces, not only the diversity of cultures, but also of various passions, thoughts and traditions, without the presence of fear.

It made me understand that I was a privileged Arab who no longer shared the same fears or concerns of the people living in the Middle East. With that I began to question my Arab identity. What does it mean to be an Arab living in the West? Can I be part of two worlds and to what extent?

Going through an identity crisis results in an ongoing questioning. It is the process of reflecting on the shattered pieces of memory, an abandoned language and understanding of one’s ancestors and history.

In university, I learned a lot about European and North American thought, history and art. Anything that was labeled as “indigenous” or “eastern” in nature was seen as a small section of a bigger narrative that was predominately western and white.

In the process of questioning, I started to wonder why was it that my heritage with its vast literature and customs, and that of many others, remained so absent in the education system. So I read as much as I could to fill in the gap.

Unless specific courses relating to a culture or region were taken, a euro-centric world-view dominated and it still does to this day. Some professors point that out, but they carry on their course, changing nothing, as if a disclaimer is enough.

Source: www.yourmiddleeast.com