VIDEO :: Food vendors protest unattended food cart rule. NY1 reports. more>

"We dream of having a place of worship and a center for youth activities within walking distance," said Ahmed, who is Yemeni American and has lived in Brooklyn for over 40 years.

VIDEO :: An excerpt of the proceedings at Community Board 15 in Brooklyn on the plans to build a mosque in Sheepshead Bay. (part 2) more>

With new TSA measures implemented targeting people of Muslim countries with special security dispositions, the Arab-Muslim community speaks out its fear of being profiled and discriminated against.

AUDIO :: As travelers face even more scrutiny, security and civil liberties experts are asking: What will it take to screen passengers effectively? NPR's Brian Naylor reports. more>

Recent NY state budget cuts threaten the financial sustainability of many independent Arab-American pharmacies, and deprive their communities of the local pharmacist, whose role goes beyond dispensing medicines.  more>

Lawmakers have adopted a bill to clamp down on media outlets in the Middle East deemed to be fueling anti-American violence. It would, for the first time, label satellite providers which broadcast such stations as terrorists.

VIDEO :: In December, the U.S. House of Representatives approved legislation that would label certain Middle Eastern satellite providers as terrorist organizations to prevent radical anti-American propaganda from hitting the airwaves. more>

Sociologists Anny Bakalian and Mehdi Bozorgmehr have authored a book that looks at activist and advocacy roots in Muslim-American communities and their influence on the communities' response to profiling and prejudice.

VIDEO :: The consequences of the 9/11 attacks will undoubtedly be felt for years to come. And the tragedy has continued to affect ordinary Muslim Americans to this day. more>

Leaders from New York City’s Arab and Muslim communities are piling the pressure on Mayor Michael Bloomberg to take a more balanced public position about the recent Israel-Gaza war. more>

Jordanian-born 26-year-old Khadeeja lives with her three daughters and son in a shelter for battered women in New York City. This is the only place that would take them in. Her husband was detained and deported two months earlier for working illegally and not having proper documentation for more than five years. more>

In a complaint filed in July 2006 with Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, Loay el-Dagany, from Kuwait, said his supervisor, David Goyette, repeatedly called him a terrorist and threw packages at him. more>

Maimonides Medical Center, a traditional Jewish hospital, has broken barriers among religious communities of Bay Ridge, in Brooklyn. Since the late 1990s, the hospital has reached out to Brooklyn’s Muslim community, including them in its training plan to care for the medically underserved. more>

If your name happens to be Abdul Hameed, Ahmed Mohammed, or Abdullah Ahmed – three names currently on the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control’s list – it is possible that your bank account could be closed. more>

Recent statements by Australian Prime Minister John Howard suggested that Muslims uncomfortable with a secular society should consider leaving the country. This is the latest in a spate of anti-Muslim actions around the globe, including possible incursion into United States mosques to root out the enemy. more>

“I took one look and was shocked to read the words 'Allah' and 'Mohammed' on the purse, and although I wasn't able to decipher the entire verse, I was instinctively certain it was taken from the Koran. I am not a Muslim but my instincts also told me that such holy verses should not be featured on a fashion accessory.” more>

Arabs want reform, but the change they want is more related to quality of life than political issues. And when asked how helpful the United States could be in promoting reform in their countries, they were decidedly cool to U.S. involvement in their internal affairs. more>

Muslim women make the decision to wear or not to wear the hijab, or headscarf, based on culture and economics—not only religion. Women have been restricted from wearing hijab across the globe, including in Muslim countries. The author interviews three sets of Muslim Arab sisters living in different countries: in each set, one wears thehijab and the other does not. more>

Similar to other communities, domestic abuse is a delicate issue among Arab-Americans. The difference is that there has been little or no attempt to bring it out into the open; cultural and religious values hamper the discussion. more>

I believe that the great majority of our soldiers are as disgusted by the [the torture of Iraqi detainees] as I am. I also believe that even one soldier who does not practice the values espoused by the army is one too many. More than ever, there is a need in the Armed Forces for Arab Americans linguists, soldiers and officers. more>

How are the Iraqis coping? What is life like in Iraq now? Why aren’t these questions being asked to Iraqis by the mainstream American media? Aramica talks to two Iraquis about how things are back home. more>

On December 3, 2003 we wrote "Michael Bloomberg: Too busy or just too prejudiced," an article borne from the community’s sense of exasperation and isolation. It received a positive response from community members and a number of officials. It also resulted in a phone call from the Mayor’s Office. more>

How sad is it that so many Arab Americans have bitter experiences dealing with their fellow Arab Americans?" How does this sad reality affect the health of our community? It contributes to its deterioration more>

How do you prove it did not happen? more>

"I think Arabs pollute our city... they have a certain resentment toward freedom and diversity," is an example of a message on a community message board in Bayridge. more>

There is not going to be a Pakistani Hour or an African American Hour or an Arab Hour. All of our programming will have people and issues from those ethnic groups blended in. Take for example a show that focuses on legal issues—civil rights, immigration, and so on. The host could be an African American woman interviewing an Arab American and a South Asian. Between the issues and the people on camera, we will be appealing to that diversity. The same goes for sitcoms and stand up comedy. more>

It has come to my attention that you’re struggling with being called an Arab American. You’re not alone. Some of us will only admit to being Arab American when left with no alternative. But we have so many reasons to be proud of who we are, we should be shouting it from the rooftops. more>

“What they really wanted to know is why there is hostility against America. Why does it seem that Muslims hate America?” said Sheikh Feisal Abdul Rao’of in his reponse to Aramica’s interview with the FBI’s Kevin Donovan. more>

“There is a shortcoming from the FBI’s side.”“I am a member of the Arab American community and I don’t know one community leader in Brooklyn who was contacted by or conveying information to the FBI about our objectives.” These are two community leaders’ responses to Aramica’s interview with Kevin Donovan. more>

When we first thought about interviewing the FBI, it was not without a small amount of anxiety. Those three little letters―FBI―are enough to cause some of us to break into a cold sweat. more>

“American crowds sing the Arabic lyrics—even though they don’t know what they mean,” said DJ Amir. Amir, originally from Cairo, has distinguished himself in the New York club scene by remixing Arabic music with American top 40 songs. more>

They speak Arabic. They listen to Arabic music. They eat Arabic food. And yet, here in New York, they are not considered a part of the Arab American community – by Arab Christians, Arab Muslims, or even by themselves (for the most part). Why not? more>