Freshman Lina Abid vividly remembers being asked the fateful question, “What are you?” in elementary school, and not knowing how to respond. “I remember telling [a classmate] my whole life story because I didn’t have an answer,” she said.
Abid’s story is one that crosses countries and cultures. Born in Saudi Arabia to an American mother and a Tunisian father, she lived in Syria as a baby, and then in Tunisia as a toddler. She doesn’t remember much from those early years abroad, but she hears stories about life after moving: “My mom told me that she still has this list of words that she had to give my preschool teacher that were French and Arabic words … because I was so confused about the language that I was supposed to be speaking,” Abid said.
Sophomore Ella Judeh has also noticed the misconceptions surrounding her Arab-American identity. “I feel like there’s a lot of stereotypes about Arabs [that] are mostly not true,” Judeh said.
For Abid, this confusion often appears in surveys and questionnaires: “[Arab-American is] not really a box,” she said. “I haven’t known how to approach how I … identify myself,” Abid explained, “I don’t really experience discrimination … but I still feel like [my Arab identity] is a part of who I am.”
While April was officially recognized as Arab American Heritage Month by President Joe Biden in Apr. 2021—after years of advocacy by the Arab American Foundation—neither Abid nor Judeh did anything in particular to commemorate the month. Judeh spent much of the month celebrating Ramadan and Eid with her family and the Muslim Student Affinity group.
Despite the questions their identities can sometimes bring, both Abid and Judeh recognize their cultures as a point of pride. “I’m very proudly Arab … I feel like it just makes me different than other people [at SPA],” Judeh said.
Since moving to the United States and losing her knowledge of Arabic, Abid longs for a deeper connection to her Tunisian heritage. “I was really proud but … I was always kind of looking for more connection with that part of who I am,” she said.
Judeh’s father, who is from Palestine, has immersed her in their culture from a young age, including through language: “My dad tried to teach me Arabic … but that didn’t go so well,” she said. She also spent time going to the mosque with him, listening to the Koran, and talking to their family back in Palestine.
She has found a community and safe space within the Muslim Student Affinity group: “At school, I feel very comfortable about it, especially when I’m with the Muslim affinity group because we can all talk about whatever we want there, so it feels very welcoming,” Judeh said.
Similarly, over time, Abid has come to terms with the confusion surrounding her identity. “I feel like I don’t have to give [people] my whole life story anymore,” she said.
