Five Approaches You Need to Take as an Arab American Student

posted on: Jun 21, 2020

If you’re an Arab American student, you may face many prejudices that hard to oppose and handle on your own. In a time like this, there is an urgent need in role models – people who help to shape and transform general opinion on Arabs in the modern world. Thanks to the world of free speech and course on equality, we finally can find some actors or other media people to take a positive example from the people we admire.

Arab Americans’ accomplishments are as diverse as our community itself. Arab Americans’ names are highlighted in numerous spheres such as science, medicine, sports, arts, and politics. There is no aspect of American life without Arabs.

Arab diaspora is one of the most cultured and educated in modern America. Its representatives own a large number of large businesses, such as, for example, textile enterprises, metal processing companies, the production of spare parts for cars, and even electrical appliances have been launched. Millions of dollars are invested annually in US social, cultural, educational, and charitable projects. And, of course, any terrorist acts on religious grounds are condemned.

Experts have found that after the September 11 attacks, about 49% of Arabs are insulted annually because of their race and religion. And this is happening in such a tolerant and tolerant country like the United States of America. But this is surprising: in almost the same way as all citizens, American Arabs are ready to sacrifice part of their civil liberties if this helps to fight terrorism. Even so, nearly half of the US population speaks out for the possibility of arresting Arabs and Muslims without guilt.

There is a significant number of misconceptions interlined with Arab Americans, and it influences hard on the perspective of all Arab American students. Most of them come from a general stereotype that needs to be broken.

5 Misconceptions That Need to Be Changed

It’s a well-known fact that not all Arabs and Muslim and not all Muslims are Arab. Some Arab Americans are Christian, some are Muslim, some are Druze. Arab Americans descend from a diverse identity, religiously, and ethnically, from 22 different countries from throughout the Arab world.

Your Future Profession Is Not Limited to Doctor or Scientist

Your national identity doesn’t define your future profession. Being Arab descent doesn’t mean that you have a special ability in the Math or IT sphere. Yes, cultural habits influence your persistence and time spent studying, especially with strict and deadly-determined parents who see you as a doctor or IT genius. But it depends only on you whether you become a designer, writer, or digital analytic.

You Have All Rights as American Citizen

You have equal rights as any other American in this country. If you see that any professor treats you differently because of your identity, you need to report this lousy behavior immediately. Patience is an incredible treat of your character. Still, it would help if you thought about fundamental values and that the teacher’s attitude may be spread towards other Arab students as well.

You’re Arab, and You Should Be Proud

There is no shame in being proud of your ancestry. A lot of significant politicians, athletes, movie stars, and writers are Arabs themselves. Just let people know that the Arab people are just as successful and widely-known as they should be. The list includes, but is not limited to, Salma Hayek, Linda Sarsour, Dr. Farouk el-Baz, Gigi Hadid, and Khalid Khannouchi.

Academic Results Are Your Achievement

You are showing great academic results, not because of your ethnicity, but due to your characteristics. You are smart because you’re a hard-working and well-rounded person. Don’t let stereotypes to evaluate yourself or transfer your achievements to some cultural reasons. Maybe others fall behind you because they are lazy and not because you’re Arab? You don’t need any academic writing help in most cases, only if you’re having part-time jobs while they can’t handle their general load.

Arab Americans are a beautiful community that meets a lot of prejudices and misunderstandings among close-minded Americans. It doesn’t mean that it’s your duty; you change the country’s perception of the race. All you need to do is to ensure that you can block out all mistreatment in your life as no one is allowed to look down on the person of our age and evaluate him or her based on their ethnicity. You’re individual, and you’re a student, and you deserve to be treated as such.

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