Moustafa Bayoumi, author of "This Muslim American Life: Dispatches from the War on Terror" joins us to speak about the unique and precarious positions that Muslims and Arab Americans find themselves in the West today. From complex identities to FBI surveillance, Bayoumi provides some helpful insights into some complicated questions on this week's podcast.

Purchase "This Muslim American Life" here:
http://nyupress.org/books/9781479835645/

Theme song: Muqata'a - Ahya' (Instrumental) @boikutt

21 - Muslim American: Moustafa Bayoumi on the state of American Muslims today

This month, the United Nations released a report stating that today a record 65 million people have been displaced by global conflict. As this staggering number only seems to grow, confidence in world leadership to manage these overlapping crises, let alone solve them, is at an all time low.

Since 1948, millions of Palestinians have been displaced from their homes, placed in temporary refugee camps, awaiting return to their homeland. The decades-old refugee camps in Lebanon have only become more crowded with new waves of refugees fleeing conflict in Syria. Today, I speak Amina Ashkar, born in the Burj al-Barajneh refugee camp in Lebanon on the situation in Lebanon, the peace process, and her message to Arab-Americans.

Photo Credit: Simon Norfolk

22 - When Temporary Doesn't Feel So Temporary: Interview with Refugee Amina Ashkar

Journalist, host, and cook Blanche Shaheen joins us in the studio to talk to us about her cooking show, Feast in the Middle East! She's making classic Arab home cooking accessible to people of all ages and shes even got some interesting new twists. We talk food and culture with a side of politics of course! Join us for that and more on this episode of Arabiyaat.

Link to Blanche's work here:

Blanche TV
Feast in the Middle East Blog
Connect with her on Facebook as well!

23 - Get a taste of Blanche Shaheen's Feast in the Middle East

Associate law professor and Al Jazeera columnist Khaled Beydoun joins us from Detroit, Michigan to go deeper on Islamophobia. We discuss corporate vs independent media, Muslim voting patterns in the 2016 presidential election, and government surveillance of black and brown bodies.

Read Khaled's articles here
Follow him on Twitter and Facebook: @KhaledBeydoun

Email arabiyaat@kpfa.org to provide us with feedback or ideas for new segments. Thanks to Sasha Totah and Claire Breen for their assistant producing this episode!

24 - What Does Islamophobia Really Mean? With Khaled Beydoun

Did you know that in many states, Arab numbers are equal to or greater than Jewish numbers — but for a variety of reasons, Arabs have never defeated a candidate with their clout. Why? In this episode, Arab American Institute president, Dr. James Zogby explains. He gets real about what it takes to achieve power in this country and he would know … For decades, he’s been working tirelessly in Washington to influence power in a pretty hostile climate. Don’t miss it!

Dr. James Zogby on Arabs in Politics

Guided by Linda Khoury (producer for KPFA's Up Front) and Souraya A., Arabiyaat is a space for Arabs in the Middle East and the diaspora to explore their identity and heritage, creating a common ground for Levantines, North Africans, Gulf Arabs, Muslims, Christians, and everything in between. 

You can reach us at arabiyaat.podcast@gmail.com

Arabiyaat is produced at 94.1 FM KPFA studios in Berkeley, CA. 

Logo by Delilah Mokri

Theme song by Muqata'a (@boikutt)

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