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AAI in the News

South Florida Arabs afraid to speak out on crisis in Middle East

By Tal Abbady
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Posted on Monday July 24, 2006

Roundups and arrests. Federal scrutiny. Squinted-eyed stares. That’s what many South Florida Arabs remember of the months that followed the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Those raw memories, and the fear that any organized activity will draw the wrong kind of attention, are keeping local Arab-American groups tight-lipped as a growing crisis engulfs Lebanon.

While Israel’s offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, which has killed over 350 Lebanese and 34 Israelis, has sparked protests in parts of the United States and Europe, Arab-American reaction in South Florida has been muted.

“People are afraid of the same kind of scrutiny that befell Sami Al-Arian,” said Joe Badran, co-chairman of the Jewish Arab Dialogue Association, which organizes interfaith discussions between Arabs and Jews. Al-Arian is a former University of South Florida professor accused by the government of funding terrorists in a case that lasted several years. A jury acquitted Al-Arian of eight counts of aiding the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and deadlocked on nine other charges. He pleaded guilty to one charge and federal officials deported him earlier this year.

“The Patriot Act allowed the government to go after anyone who wasn’t born in this country,” said Badran, of Deerfield Beach. “And even folks who are naturalized citizens feared losing their citizenship and being separated from their families for no other reason than because they are Arabs or Muslims.”

The public glare forced a vibrant community to shy away from civic activity, activists say.

“People feel that they’re being watched, that they’re being placed on terrorist lists,” said Roraima Aisha Kanar, 52, a customer service representative who lives in Miami. “So instead of getting involved they retract into their shell and walk in the other direction.”

As a result, the general public knows little about their Arab neighbors and their distress over death and destruction in the Middle East.

“Our views are not out there. That allows people to form an inaccurate opinion of us and to think that we are somehow less than everyone else,” Badran said. “9-11 gave neoconservatives an excuse to put the view out there that we are a threat. Arabs and Muslims became the bogeyman.”

Jack Lieberman, who co-chairs the Jewish Arab Dialogue Association with Badran, echoed his concerns.

“The government does profile Arabs and Muslims, and we’ve had violations of Muslims’ civil liberties,” said Lieberman, who supports Israel. “They should be able to express themselves freely without fear of retribution.”

In some pockets outside South Florida, however, Arab-Americans are taking to the streets. About 10,000 people rallied Tuesday in Dearborn, Mich., which has one of the country’s largest Arab-American communities.

Protests also clogged streets in Spain, where anti-Israel sentiment runs deep. Thousands rallied Wednesday in Madrid, where the Israeli ambassador and Spanish government officials exchanged bitter accusations.

But South Florida’s Arabs and Muslims have so far steered clear of such activity. In contrast, pro-Israel solidarity vigils have packed synagogues in South Florida. Hundreds gathered at Ramat Shalom synagogue Wednesday for an event organized by the United Jewish Community of Broward County and a dozen other groups.

The relative absence of large, organized rallies in much of the United States reflects a sense of resignation among Arabs living in a country that is Israel’s staunchest ally, said Salam Al-Marayati, director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council.

“The political tradition here has always been one-sided. Many Muslims feel that their perspectives are not respected, or that nobody is listening to them. You have Congress passing resolutions that are pro-Israel with no consideration for the loss of Lebanese life,” Al-Marayati said from Los Angeles.

Other national Arab-American leaders expressed concern that grassroots support for Lebanon has been slow to emerge.

“There is a tragedy unfolding and we need to take a more active role,” said Nidal Ibrahim, executive director of the Arab American Institute.

Ibrahim said the institute, the Muslim Public Affairs Council and other groups are asking Congress to call for a ceasefire and circulating petitions. At an emergency summit in Washington last week, 120 Arab-American leaders met with members of Congress, including U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, and Sen. John Sununu, R-New Hampshire.

“We need to get together, gather our resources and do what we can,” said Mohammad Javed, head of the Islamic Foundation in South Florida in Sunrise. “I don’t know what’s on Hezbollah’s mind and every nation has a right to defend itself. But the tanks, the shellings and the F-16s are not the answer.”