Newsletter Archive

Honduras native Carlos and his 17-year-old son were recently detained after crossing the Rio Grande River into the US. The two were held (separately) in detention for six days before being released. They now plan to join relatives in Florida until their court hearing in late June. In the meantime, they are learning what they can do to stay in the United States, as their case is added to the US immigration court’s current backlog of 700,000 cases.

As both major US parties prepare for the midterm congressional elections, this week could turn out to be pivotal for the Trump White House. President Trump’s decision to reverse a policy of separating families coming across the US southern border came after a political firestorm fired up opposition Democrats and alarmed even some Republicans. At the very least, the uproar likely set the stage for immigration to be a key issue in November.

‘They allow you to actually speak to a black, or an Arab or a Jew, and discover what it’s like to be that person.’ A growing citizen movement in Europe, known as Living Libraries, is designed to smash stereotypes and prejudice through dialogue. The initiative comes as Europe experiences rising levels of xenophobia and hate speech. Living libraries aim to dispel negative assumptions by offering people a chance to meet others they might otherwise shun.

Thirteen-year-old Faisel can see his house through the barbed wire fence of the Iraq camp where he lives with other displaced families, but the boy’s home might as well be 1,000 miles away. The reason the Arab teen and other families like his cannot return to their houses is rooted back in the 1960s, when Baghdad’s Arabization policy forced hundreds of thousands of Kurds from their homes, while Arab families were brought in.

VIDEO: Hollywood often depicts Muslims as terrorists or other nefarious characters. That’s why a nonprofit advocacy group decided to set up shop in Tinseltown. The Muslim Public Affairs Council created a Hollywood bureau to engage with filmmakers, while also honoring those making a difference with the so-called ‘Muslim Oscars.’