Featured Immigrant story:

Nadine Nabass’ Immigrant Story
(WIN Secretary)

Celebrating Arab American Heritage Month

As-Salaam-Alaykum! (May peace be unto you)    

In Spring of 2021, President Joe Biden made history by declaring April to be National Arab American Heritage Month. This is an opportunity to acknowledge the complex history of Arab Americans in the United States and to honor the many incredible contributions they make to this country. Those who fall under this category have ancestry from Arabic-speaking countries such as Yemen, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and non-Arabic-speaking countries such as Afghanistan and Iran.

For the first time in history, the 2020 US Census allowed Arab Americans to self-report their ethnicity separate from the “white” category. This is a critical change that will allow our community to access resources equitably. White people with European ancestry do not experience the same systemic barriers as Arab Americans, so often our community’s needs are not able to be separately assessed and met. The Census results indicated that there are currently over 3.5 million Arab Americans in the United States.

As a Washington State employee and an Arab American, getting the opportunity to join the Washington Immigrant Network (WIN) was one of the very first times I felt seen as an Arab American at work. It has given me the chance to connect with and advocate for other state employees from my community. This month, WIN invites you to take some time to learn more about some of the contributions of Arab Americans in your field of work. You can start by checking out the Arab American Institute to read about notable contributions made to music, art, fashion, and science and technology innovation!

I am a first generation Arab American. I was born and raised here, but my parents immigrated to the United States in the 80s. My dad is Jordanian, and my mom is a refugee from Iraq. Both learned English, got jobs, and contributed to their communities while raising me and my two siblings. My mom went on to get her master’s degree to become an elementary school teacher. My dad made friends with literally everyone in a 20-mile radius of our home. It wasn’t all easy though. After 09/11, my dad lost his job, and it seems no one would hire him for having an “Arabic sounding” name. My mom worried about my siblings and I getting bullied or attacked at school. This worry is the daily reality of many Arab Americans, especially as our community is increasingly stereotyped due to international politics with the US and the Middle East.

We are, yet again, celebrating Arab American Heritage Month with a heavy heart as over 30,000 Palestinians have been killed during the hostility in Gaza over the last six months. This Arab American Heritage Month, I want to honor all the Palestinian and Arab families in America who have lost their loved ones to fighting or hate crimes, are unsure if their loved ones are still alive, and who must endure the reality of waking up every day to fight for their right to live.

We all process this trauma and pain differently, and for me, that is leaning into poetry and art made by my community. April is also National Poetry Month, so I wanted to end by sharing a poem by Fady Joudah:

Mimesis
My daughter
            wouldn’t hurt a spider
That had nested
Between her bicycle handles
For two weeks
She waited
Until it left of its own accord

If you tear down the web I said
It will simply know
This isn’t a place to call home
And you’d get to go biking

She said that’s how others
Become refugees isn’t it?

Fady Joudah
Palestinian-American Poet & Physician

Past Immigrant Stories:

Daniel Gomez - Department of Licensing

Mariel Amundsen - Employment Security Department

Stella Chau - Department of Revenue

Tahir Khan - Department of Revenue

Indira Melgarejo - Office of Financial Management

Nina Mesihovic - Office of Financial Management

Atina Silivelio – Department of Ecology

Mariel Amundsen- Employment Security Department

Cody Pourarien- Labor & Industries

Elia Mendoza- Employment Security Department

Christina Pourarien- Employment Security Department

Julie Campos -Office of Minority & Women's Business Enterprises