12 Organizations to Support During Arab American Heritage Month
To celebrate Arab American Heritage Month at your workplace, consider supporting Arab organizations as part of your event.
The following is a list of various Arab cultural, artistic, research-based and social service organizations located in USA, Canada and internationally.
Public Education on Arab and Arab-American History
Afikra
Website: https://www.afikra.com/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/afikra_/
For centuries, images of the Arab world in the Western imagination have been riddled with stereotypes and dehumanizing images. As a result, it’s difficult for many living in North America to imagine the Arab region as one that is incredibly rich in history, heritage, innovation, scholarship, art, food, and beauty of all kinds. Enter: afikra! Starting as a grassroots movement in Brooklyn in 2014, afikra is now a global media and educational platform focused on the histories and cultures of the Arab world. By tuning into their podcasts, attending their virtual and/or in-person events, and following their accounts on social media, your team can learn more about the Arab world from leading scholars, intellectuals, chefs, writers, filmmakers, and more.
Arab American National Museum (AANM)
Website: https://arabamericanmuseum.org
IG: https://www.instagram.com/arabamericanmuseum/
The Arab American National Museum is the first and only museum dedicated to archiving and showcasing the history, culture, and contributions of the Arab community in the United States. The AANM tells the story of the Arab American experience, from the first immigrants who arrived to the U.S. primarily from the Levant (Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Jordan) in the late 19th century to the descendants and recent immigrants of today who originate from across the Arab world. This story is told through a beautifully well-preserved archive of literature and research about Arab America as well as through a variety of year-round film screenings, performances, exhibitions, academic panels, storytelling circles for children, and so much more.
Art and Culture
Edge of Arabia (EOA)
Website: http://edgeofarabia.com/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/edgeofarabia/
Edge of Arabia initially began in 2003 as a cultural initiative by British and Saudi artists to establish and promote artistic connections and dialogues between Saudi Arabia and the Western world. After hosting art exhibitions to various countries around the world and providing a new generation of Saudi artists a platform to showcase their work, EOA went on to include artists from across the Arab world in its ongoing exhibitions. Today, EOA acts as an artist-led cultural organization connecting the Arab and Western art worlds. The EOA’s latest project consisted of a multi-year tour across the United States promoting and sharing the works of over 300 artists from the Arab world and reaching over 1.5 million people through exhibitions and events in various American museums, galleries, and institutions. By attending their exhibits, reading their publications, and following their social media accounts, you and your team can learn about the latest art to come out of the Arab world.
Arab Film and Media Institute (AFMI)
Website: https://arabfilminstitute.org
IG: https://www.instagram.com/arabfilmmedia/
Based in the US, the Arab Film and Media Institute is dedicated to sharing and promoting Arab storytelling and supporting Arab filmmakers. While the AFMI is most known for its annual Arab Film Festival, which showcases short and feature films from across the Arab world and its diasporas, the festival also hosts a variety of year-round events, from school screenings to college exhibitions to workshops for Arab youth. You can visit AFMI’s website or social media accounts for some amazing recommendations of Arab films and attend their annual festival to watch the Institute’s latest selection of Arab films from around the world.
Toronto Arab Film
Website: https://www.arabfilm.ca/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/torontoarabfilm/
Born out of a desire to fill in a gap in Toronto’s art scene, Toronto Arab Film was created to bring Arab stories and voices to both Arab and non-Arab audiences in the city. In addition to its annual film festival, the first and only festival dedicated to Arab films in the city, TAF also hosts year-round screenings and panels with filmmakers as well as professional development initiatives and programs for Arab filmmakers and Arab youth interested in film. As mainstream Canadian film and television continue to severely underrepresent Arab characters, TAF offers a unique opportunity for Arab audiences to see themselves reflected on screen, and for non-Arab audiences to get access to Arab stories from around the world.
The National Arab Orchestra (NAO) and its sister organization in Canada, the Canadian Arabic Orchestra (CAO)
NAO Website: https://araborchestra.org
CAO Website: https://canadianarabicorchestra.ca/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/canadianarabicorchestra/
Of all components of the Arab cultural and artistic tradition, Arabic music and musical folklore are perhaps the most central to Arab regional identity. Both the National Arab Orchestra and Canadian Arabic Orchestra are dedicated to preserving and sharing Arab musical folklore and tradition with Arab and non-Arab audiences alike. Travelling across their respective countries (the U.S. and Canada), the two orchestras have hosted numerous concerts, tours, and music festivals, often inviting renowned Arab singers to perform. Over the past year, the CAO in particular has also built connections with other ethno-cultural musical groups with which it hosted a Multicultural Folk Celebration. Both organizations, therefore, work not only to develop the Arabic musical scene in North America, but also to contribute to and grow the general cultural scene in both countries.
Employment, Settlement, and Social Services
Professional Canadian Arab Network (PCAN)
Website: https://wearepcan.com/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/pcan_/
Despite their high levels of education, Arabs in Canada have the highest unemployment of all racialized groups in the country. The Professional Canadian Arab Network aims to tackle this issue by offering professional development, mentorship, and network opportunities to Arabs in Canada. PCAN also partners with employers to offer their clients job opportunities in various fields. If your team is interested in becoming an ally of the Arab-Canadian community, consider partnering with PCAN to recruit Arab talent and learn how to welcome Arab employees in your workspace.
Arab Community Center of Toronto (ACCT)
Website: https://acctonline.ca
IG: https://www.instagram.com/acctonline/
Born in 1972, the Arab Community Centre of Toronto is an Arab-led settlement and social services organization that supports both Arab and non-Arab newcomers in the GTA, with specific support programs for women, youth, and seniors. Newcomers of all ethnic, racial, and religious backgrounds are welcome to visit the ACCT to access support in finding housing, employment, education, income support, citizenship information, language classes, computer literacy classes, medical services, legal advice, emotional support, and more!
Research, Policy, and Advocacy
The Arab American Institute (AAI)
Website: https://www.aaiusa.org/about-us
IG: https://www.instagram.com/arabamericaninstitute/
Founded in 1995, the Arab American Institute is a national civil rights advocacy organization whose mission is to protect the civil rights and liberties of Arab Americans and the human rights of Arabs globally. The AAI plays a key role in advising policy makers, encouraging Arab Americans to be civically engaged, and ensuring that Arab Americans are democratically represented in all aspects of civic life. The AAI also hosts an annual Awards Ceremony, named after renowned Lebanese-American author and poet, Kahlil Gibran, to celebrate the contributions of Arab Americans to public service, journalism, culture, humanitarian work, and more.
Canadian Arab Institute (CAI)
Website: https://www.canadianarabinstitute.org/
The CAI is a national, non-partisan organization seen by many as a representative of the Arab-Canadian community on a policy and research level. Through surveys and community-based research studies, the CAI collects data about the lives and views of Arabs in Canada in order to make informed policy recommendations to relevant government bodies. For example, the last study conducted by the CAI and its partners and funded by Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE), sought to examine the reasons why Arab women have the highest unemployment rates of any demographic group in Canada, despite being very highly educated.
In addition to its policy and research work, the CAI also organizes/co-organizes a wide range of programs and campaigns, from #YallaJab, which aims to reduce vaccine hesitancy amongst Arab communities in Canada, to #Text4Amal, a free supportive mental health intervention texting program for Arabs in Canada.
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)
Website: https://www.adc.org/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/adcnational/?hl=en
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee is the go-to for Arab Americans who experience instances of Anti-Arab racism, discrimination, surveillance, censorship, and/or police brutality. Upon experiencing racism, the ADC supports Arab-Americans in filing a complaint to the appropriate contacts and offering legal help. The ADC also educates Arab Americans on their rights when interacting with law enforcement, creates curriculum material on the Arab world for schools, and advocates for the inclusion of a “Middle Eastern and North African (MENA)” category on the U.S. Census (currently, Arabs and other Middle Easterners are forced to self-identify as “White”).
The ADC also operates a scholarship program named after renowned academic, Jack Shaheen, whose ground-breaking books on anti-Arab and anti-Muslim stereotypes in American television and film have become cornerstone readings in media and communication studies as well as Arab American studies. Today, the ADC continues to act as the heart of Arab grassroots organizing in the U.S.