Washington, DC | December 12, 2008 | www.adc.org | This Monday, December 15, 2008, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) will be represented live by Kareem Shora, National Executive Director, on the Al-Jazeera Arabic news television network.
Shora will appear on Al-Jazeera’s live weekly news talk show program “Min (From) Washington” which airs worldwide from 2:05 to 2:50 pm EST (9:05 to 9:50 pm in most of the Middle East).
Shora will appear on a panel discussing the findings of the recently-released “ADC Report on Hate Crimes and Discrimination against Arab Americans” (2003-2007 Edition). The segment is scheduled to air from 2:05 to 2:30 pm EST (9:05 to 9:30 pm in most of the Middle East). Click here for more information about the program.
ADC‘s report found that while the rate of violent hate crimes against the community (or those perceived to be members of the community) has continued to decline from the immediate post 9/11 surge, it remains elevated from the years prior to 9/11. Further, Arab Americans continue to face higher rates of employment discrimination in both the public and private sectors. Discrimination at airports based on stereotyping, over-zealousness or prejudice by airline personnel or even other passengers is now one of the main sources of discrimination facing Arab-American air travelers. Arab-American travelers face serious issues with border crossing detentions and delays, especially on the U.S.-Canada border.
The report‘s findings also indicate that Arab-American students continue to face significant problems with discrimination and harassment in schools around the country. Arab-American students and faculty have faced increased levels of discrimination and political harassment campaigns, especially involving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and efforts by right-wing groups to stifle debate on U.S. foreign policy in academia.
Defamation in popular culture and the media remains a very serious problem facing the Arab-American community. In spite of a far better record from the film and television industry in 2003-2007, defamation spread wildly in the non-fiction world of television, magazines, radio, newspapers and websites. A campaign of relentless vilification against Muslims and Islam has been the single biggest contributor to the collapse in American public opinion of Islam during this period. The report clearly points out that “Islamophobia” and “anti-Muslim intolerance” is on the rise in the United States and highlights the mushrooming of the so-called “terrorism expert” as a cottage industry with the Arab and Muslim-American communities often in its crosshairs.
Civil liberties concerns remain serious, including some aspects of the discourse on a homegrown terrorist threat, the reauthorization of the USA PATRIOT Act, aspects of the REAL ID Act, secret evidence provisions, warrantless wiretapping and elements of immigration reform, among other issues.
The ADC “Report on Hate Crimes and Discrimination Against Arab Americans” (2003-2007 Edition) has already garnered significant media attention including the following:
1) Associated Press: Report – Prejudice against Muslims on rise.
2) Reuters: Hate crimes against US Arabs still more common
3) Arab American News: ADC releases hate crimes report
As with all scheduled live television programming, the show is subject to change without notice.