Forty years ago, I was at an Arab-American dinner event with Rev Jesse Jackson when he leaned over and said to me, “I’m running for president and I want you to join my campaign staff.” My immediate reaction was to be honoured, yet conflicted.
I was in my fourth year as executive director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), a group I had co-founded in 1980 with former senator James Abourezk. And so, I responded, “I have to think about this. I’ve spent the last four years organising my community and I’m not sure I can give it up right now.” His reply, which I’ll never forget, was simple and direct: “We’ll do more for your community in the next four months than you have been able to do in the last four years.”
The community’s relationship with Rev Jackson began in the 1970s, when he, like so many other black civil rights leaders, embraced the cause of Palestinian rights and defended Arab-American participation in political coalitions that had tried to exclude them. Our 1979 Palestine Human Rights Campaign (PHRC) convention featured two prominent leaders of Martin Luther King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference. They had just returned from Lebanon where they had met Yasser Arafat, who was protesting against America’s “no talk” policy with the Palestine Liberation Organisation. The convention also featured Rev Jackson, who was leaving the next day to visit Arafat.
Although the PHRC and ADC had been successful in building coalitions with black, Latino and US peace organisations to seek justice for Palestinians, our path to political empowerment had been blocked — principally by pro-Israel groups who saw us as a threat.
Political candidates who had held Arab-American fundraising events, returned the contributions when challenged for taking “Arab money”. Some campaigns were pressured to fire Arab-American staff. Other candidates and some political coalitions and parties rejected Arab-American endorsements and involvement in their efforts.
After much with discussion with my wife and Abourezk (who was supporting former senator George McGovern), I decided to take the position as deputy manager of Rev Jackson’s 1984 campaign. I was able to hire a young Arab American to work in the campaign office, and travelled the country organising events and raising funds.
Because Rev Jackson’s 1984 race was the first-ever major presidential campaign to welcome Arab Americans by name, it generated tremendous excitement in the community. Rallies were huge and enthusiastic, and the fundraising was significant.
I remember speaking with Rev Jackson in California, just before the state’s primary contest. He had just finished a multi-city campaign swing that featured events with Arab Americans in each location. He said to me: “I think your community has crossed the threshold of acceptance. After every fundraiser up until recently, the press would report ‘Jackson raises Arab money.’ But after the last few, there were no stories at all. It was just another fundraiser.”
Rev Jackson’s 1984 race was the first-ever major presidential campaign to welcome Arab Americans by name
We elected four Arab-American delegates to the 1984 San Francisco convention, and I was asked to deliver one of the speeches putting Rev Jackson’s name forward for nomination. It was an honour to be the first Arab American to speak at a convention and I used the opportunity to discuss the history, diversity, and contributions of my community to the United States.
Months later, a small group of us launched the Arab American Institute to build on the lessons we learnt during the 1984 campaign. We decided to focus our work on voter registration and mobilisation, supporting Arab Americans who ran for office, and bringing Arab-American concerns into the political arena.
By 1988, when Rev Jackson ran a second time, the fruits of our labour were already in evidence. We elected 55 delegates to that year’s convention, passed resolutions supporting a balanced US policy recognising Palestinian rights in 10 states, succeeded in raising Lebanon and condemning negative bias against Arabs and Arab Americans in the Democratic Party. We also held the first national debate on Palestinian rights from the podium of the convention.
In the decades since then, Arab Americans have seen an even more profound transformation in our community’s empowerment and capacity to make change. In cities where they were once shunned or ignored, people have elected Arab-American mayors who have joined hundreds of others elected to local, state and federal posts. Arab Americans now see public service as a career and while some still face challenges because of their ethnicity, or even their political views, these challenges are almost always rejected out of hand.
What we have also discovered is that political empowerment opens other doors. We have learned, for example, that when you are weak, others are able to define you and cause you to be shunned. But as you gain strength, you are respected and can define yourself. As a result, Arab Americans have come to play a leading role in civil rights, multi-ethnic, and peace and justice coalitions that once rejected us. Likewise, our input is now sought in how to portray Arabs in the media and how to teach Arab history and culture.
Challenges, of course, remain, but our path to progress has been crowned this year with President Joe Biden’s issuance of a first-ever formal proclamation of Arab American Heritage Month and with events that will celebrate the 80 Arab Americans who serve in this administration, an evening celebrating Arab culture, and a White House-hosted policy forum with Arab-American leaders.
It is without exaggeration to say that the path to Arab-American political empowerment began with Rev Jackson’s improbable but momentous 1984 presidential campaign. His slogan that year was: “Our time has come.” It was interpreted by some as being directed at African Americans but Arab Americans embraced it as their own call to empowerment. Four decades later, in communities across the country, we see a new generation building on the progress that has been made — still growing and prospering, and making it clear that “our time is now.”
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The%20specs
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UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
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The specs: 2019 Haval H6
Price, base: Dh69,900
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 197hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 315Nm @ 2,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
THE BIO
Family: I have three siblings, one older brother (age 25) and two younger sisters, 20 and 13
Favourite book: Asking for my favourite book has to be one of the hardest questions. However a current favourite would be Sidewalk by Mitchell Duneier
Favourite place to travel to: Any walkable city. I also love nature and wildlife
What do you love eating or cooking: I’m constantly in the kitchen. Ever since I changed the way I eat I enjoy choosing and creating what goes into my body. However, nothing can top home cooked food from my parents.
Favorite place to go in the UAE: A quiet beach.
WHAT ARE NFTs?
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are tokens that represent ownership of unique items. They allow the tokenisation of things such as art, collectibles and even real estate.
An NFT can have only one official owner at one time. And since they're minted and secured on the Ethereum blockchain, no one can modify the record of ownership, not even copy-paste it into a new one.
This means NFTs are not interchangeable and cannot be exchanged with other items. In contrast, fungible items, such as fiat currencies, can be exchanged because their value defines them rather than their unique properties.
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Expert input
If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?
“There are a few shoes that have ‘grail’ status for me. But the one I have always wanted is the Nike x Patta x Parra Air Max 1 - Cherrywood. To get a pair in my size brand new is would cost me between Dh8,000 and Dh 10,000.” Jack Brett
“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche
“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox
“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite
“I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy
“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra
T20 WORLD CUP QUALIFIER
Results
UAE beat Nigeria by five wickets
Hong Kong beat Canada by 32 runs
Friday fixtures
10am, Tolerance Oval, Abu Dhabi – Ireland v Jersey
7.30pm, Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Canada v Oman
A general guide to how active you are:
Less than 5,000 steps - sedentary
5,000 - 9,999 steps - lightly active
10,000 - 12,500 steps - active
12,500 - highly active
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The specs: 2018 Renault Koleos
Price, base: From Dh77,900
Engine: 2.5L, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 170hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 233Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.3L / 100km
$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
T20 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
Qualifier A, Muscat
(All matches to be streamed live on icc.tv)
Fixtures
Friday, February 18: 10am Oman v Nepal, Canada v Philippines; 2pm Ireland v UAE, Germany v Bahrain
Saturday, February 19: 10am Oman v Canada, Nepal v Philippines; 2pm UAE v Germany, Ireland v Bahrain
Monday, February 21: 10am Ireland v Germany, UAE v Bahrain; 2pm Nepal v Canada, Oman v Philippines
Tuesday, February 22: 2pm Semi-finals
Thursday, February 24: 2pm Final
UAE squad:Ahmed Raza(captain), Muhammad Waseem, Chirag Suri, Vriitya Aravind, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Alishan Sharafu, Raja Akifullah, Karthik Meiyappan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Zafar Farid, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Rahul Bhatia
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
heading
Iran has sent five planeloads of food to Qatar, which is suffering shortages amid a regional blockade.
A number of nations, including Iran's major rival Saudi Arabia, last week cut ties with Qatar, accusing it of funding terrorism, charges it denies.
The land border with Saudi Arabia, through which 40% of Qatar's food comes, has been closed.
Meanwhile, mediators Kuwait said that Qatar was ready to listen to the "qualms" of its neighbours.
AT%20A%20GLANCE
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Scores
Rajasthan Royals 160-8 (20 ov)
Kolkata Knight Riders 163-3 (18.5 ov)
Hotel Silence
Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir
Pushkin Press
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Planes grounded by coronavirus
British Airways: Cancels all direct flights to and from mainland China
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific: Cutting capacity to/from mainland China by 50 per cent from Jan. 30
Chicago-based United Airlines: Reducing flights to Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong
Ai Seoul: Suspended all flights to China
Finnair: Suspending flights to Nanjing and Beijing Daxing until the end of March
Indonesia's Lion Air: Suspending all flights to China from February
South Korea's Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air and Jin Air: Suspend all flights
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
